


Gunpowder and Lead

by Smokingcat (orphan_account)



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, I Don't Even Know, Mild Gore, Mild Language, Smut, Voice Kink
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-09
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-08-07 18:44:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 42,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7725601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/Smokingcat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All it took was one thing to change Persephones whole life. On moment that took her from her quiet lifestyle and thrown into the middle of a silent war. Things are changing and so is she</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Attack

**Author's Note:**

> So i did take this down for a bit so I could do a few changes to the story. Theres a few changes but nothing to dramatic. I hope yall enjoy it all the same. please dont be afraid to leave some feedback. Let me know what you think.

“Come out come out wherever you are” The cruel voice called out through the night. I shivered as I hid behind a large dumpster. My heart was beating loud in my ears, I feared even the woman chasing me was able to hear it, “venir à moi petite fille” Her voice was laced with a thick french accent. I closed my eyes trying to calm down. Heels clicked against the cold concrete as she moved closer to my place of hiding. A firm hand gripped at the back of my head as I was thrown forward. I spun around to come face to face with my attacker. She was a stunning woman, her skin appeared almost blue. She was wearing form fitting jumpsuit showing off the curves of her body. I was almost in awe of her unnatural beauty, her golden eyes peering down at me her lips turned up in a cruel smile. I eyed the gun in her hand in horror, was that a sniper rifle?

“P-please. I don't have any money.” I stuttered as she moved in closer stopping only a few inches from me. She chuckled lightly shaking her head. She dropped her weapon allowing it to rest at her side.

“mon cher, I do not wish to bring you harm.” her eyes trailed along my body “You are worth a great deal to me and my boss.” Her smiled widened.

“I’m worth nothing please just leave me alone.” I tried to plead with the woman once more. She placed her hand on her hip giving me a disapproving look.

“You have a very interesting talent mon cher.” I froze in place listening to her words, “Ah now that caught your attention.” She reached out causing me to flinch away from her touch. I had spent my life hiding from anyone who knew of my past. About the secrets, I tried so hard to keep hidden.

“Who are you?” I hissed. “How do you know about that?” The low rumble of an engine slowly filled the silent night air. The french woman let out an irritated sigh.

“You stay here, do not move. I won't be very happy to have to hunt you down again.” I watched her throw her hand out a grapple pulling her towards a higher vantage point. I sat wide eyed as she lifted her gun to her shoulder and peered down the scope. Faintly I could hear her mumbling to herself. I jumped as I heard shots being fired. My legs seemed to be frozen in place as I tried my hardest to get the courage to get up and run. The rumbling came closer as I spotted a bike slowly moving down the street. I noticed faintly two men on the bike, on driving the other sitting in a sidecar. I could hear crazed laughter coming from one of the two, I was too far to see who was making such a sound. That was all I needed to force myself to my feet and begin running down the alleyway, hearing the woman cursing behind me. I ran down alley after alley hoping to lose her and get away from any other trouble that could have been coming. I let out a scream as I felt a firm hand grab my arm and yank me aside, quickly a cold hand covered my mouth.

“Shh, be quiet darling, I ain't here to hurt you.” a southern and smooth voice whispered in my ear. He cautiously pulled his hand away prepared to cover my mouth again if I screamed. His eyes watched me carefully from behind the brim of his cowboy hat. The man was dressed much like you'd expect a cowboy from the movies to be. A cigar hung out of his mouth carelessly. The cowboy's skin was tanned, his hair long and shaggy hidden under the hat. He was rather stunning, I traced the features of his face carefully almost forgetting the strange situation.  
“You alright there darling?” His voice drew my attention once again the southern accent was strong, his breath reeking of whiskey and cigar smoke.

“What in god's name is happening?” I managed to finally say trying to keep my voice from shaking. He lifted a finger to his mouth, signaling to be quiet. The light sound of heels clicking came from a distance, my heart sank as I recognized the familiar click.

“Sortir petite mouche” she sounded very annoyed.

“Eh, sheila!!” A loud voice killed the silence “do you like explosions?!” A crazed cackle was followed by the loud boom of something blowing up. I felt the panic rise up in me, the cowboy seemed to notice as he gave me a reassuring nod.

“Don't worry he's with me.” I stared at him as though he was crazy. The cowboy seemed calm and had himself well put together, this man was wildly throwing bombs around like confetti. The cowboy flashed me a charming crooked smile causing my heart to flutter.

“What in god's name have I gotten in the middle of I just wanted a coffee,” I mumbled as I recalled the crazy turn of events in my uneventful evening. I felt the man tug on my arm as he practically dragged me away. I fought helplessly to get him to let me go but he refused. My jaw dropped as we stopped outside a large white ship. The cowboy ushered me on. Inside was an unnaturally large monkey. I stared at him in awe not even noticing the other man standing not far off.

“Persephone, It's wonderful to meet you. I'm sorry it's under such unfortunate circumstance.” The monkey spoke. I was dumbfounded, I had seen posters and read things about this monkey. Well technically speaking he was a gorilla. Before me stood Overwatches very own Winston. I grew up hearing stories about Overwatch and this man's amazing scientific creations.

“Persephone? Like queen of the underworld?” My attention was pulled towards a strange looking omnic. He was no doubt an omnic but didn't resemble any omnic I had ever seen. His metal and carbon fiber body were stunning, I felt myself curiously watching him. In any other circumstance, I probably would have outright questioned him about his unusual design. 

“Y-yes..” I stuttered “My parents were to put it nicely, unique people.” I forced a smile trying to figure out why I had found myself in the presence of these people. Loud heavy footsteps came from behind me. I spun around to see two men. One was smaller with a peg leg and the other was a giant. He loomed over me as he walked by making me feel like a small child.

“G’day mate!” The smaller man flashed me a wide smile as he walked by. The smell of fire and soot wafted off him. I watched him closely as he passed. He was wearing no shirt, revealing a well-toned chest and abdomen. Slowly I traced my eyes up to his face. He seemed dirty, covered in soot.

“Uhm, why what's going on?” I managed to squeak out in all the confusion “All I wanted was to a coffee next thing I know I'm being hunted down and now I'm in the presence of one of the greatest scientists of all time…” I watched Winston straighten at my compliment. 

“We’ll explain further when we get back to the facility.” a white-haired man stepped forward. He was well built, broad shoulders and well-defined muscles were evident through his tight shirt. His presence was intimidating. I nodded and stood there awkwardly unsure of what to do.

“Come sit over here darlin’” The cowboy patted a seat next to him. I felt the ship rock as it slowly took off “names McCree.” 

“I'm, uh, Persephone but I guess you already know that.” I flashed him a small smile. 

“It's alright you can remind me all you want.” He winked causing my cheeks to turn pink.

The ride back was quiet I could feel the white haired man staring at me intently. His face was covered by a visor, A bright light shone where his eyes would be, I chuckled silently to myself as he reminded me of a comic book hero. I recognized him from news stories about a vigilante running around his name was soldier 76. 

Looking around I took in the people around me. The short man I witnessed tossing bombs around was not sitting carefully tinkering with something. The larger one was standing over him mindlessly watching his breathing heavy through his mask. A small brunette wearing a bright orange jumpsuit was standing near Winston. I recognized her instantly as tracer. I shook my head trying to wrap my head around the situation.

The ship came to a jolting stop causing me to push into McCree's side. I whispered a quiet sorry as I was escorted out. The building before me was huge. It seemed almost unreal. There was a large courtyard just past the fence blocking the entrance to the facility. Winston signaled for me to follow him, despite my uncertainty of the situation, I followed close behind. The white hair man close on my feet.

“Now then Persephone. Down to business.” Winston opened a large door revealing a huge room. There were computers elsewhere. A giant tire hung closer to the back of the room. I chuckled at the image of Winston swinging around on it.

“There is an agency that goes by the name of Talon, they have caught wind of your ’abilities’” The giant gorilla spoke “as you already know my name is Winston. Overwatch has been watching you for awhile now.”

“Wait what? Me? Why?” I stared in confusion at the gorilla, he adjusted his glasses he seemed to do it more often than needed.

“Your abilities could be very useful for us.” The soldier spoke up finally stepping up and leaning against a desk. I shook my head stepping back towards the door wanting nothing more than to leave the room this very moment.

“Listen, I don't know how you found me or how much you think you know but I don't care to talk of something I've put in my past.” Winston frowned slightly. “We know of the tests your father had done to you.”

“He was my uncle. Not my father.” I hissed in distaste at the mistake. My parent had died when I was very young I remembered little about my father, but what I do remember was he was the complete opposite of my uncle.

“I apologize.”

“I don't know what you want but I don't care for any of it” I spun around but was stopped to spot the cowboy standing at the door. He was leaning casually a cigar still hanging from his mouth. 

“You may wanna listen darlin’” his southern accent was very pleasing to hear. Against my better judgment, I turned to Winston. Perhaps it was the mere fact that something about the cowboy wanted me to listen to every word he said.

“Well then speak.” sighing I crossed my arms.

“Overwatch would like to provide your protection, in return you assist us when needed.”

“Okay, so I get to be babysat all day, and you get a weapon in your war?” Winston shrugged his shoulders and gave a half nod “I don't think so. Listen I grew up admiring overwatch, but isn't it illegal for you guys to be working again? I won't have a single thing to do with any of this. I put all this behind me for a reason.” The words were hardly enough to convince me. I straightened my back and stormed towards the door.

“You'll be dead in a day without our help.” Soldiers' voice boomed sending chills down my spine. I didn't bother to look back at him.

“I'll take my chances, I've survived this long haven't I?” the cowboy still blocked the door “If you please get out of my way that would be great.” I watched him hesitate before looking back at the men behind me. With a sigh, he moved aside allowing me to leave. 

“Shame watching something so pretty walking away.” I heard the man whispered under his breath. This pulled a small smile out of me as I tried to keep my head up and stormed off.

It took some time for me to finally find my way back out, I was shocked they allowed an outsider to freely roam the base like that. It was a long walk back into the city but I didn't mind it. I enjoyed the fresh air tainted with the smell of the sea. The scenery around the base was beautiful. The ocean laid not too far off as the base seemed to have been built as close to it as it could be. Trees flourished around it the simple sound of birds chirping made it a relaxing walk.

The city was much different, soon the trees were replaced by large towering buildings. The sweet songs of birds, replaced by the honking of car horns. I sighed coming back into reality from such a soothing walk was unfortunate. I'd love to live around the ocean. I found my way back to my apartment opening the door I glanced around the small living space. It wasn't much, a simple one bedroom one bathroom apartment. The living room was small giving way to the even smaller kitchen. 

I grabbed a bottle of water from my fridge and fell back onto my couch flicking on the t.v. My curiosity peaked as I saw a familiar face plastered on the news channel, I quickly turned up the volume.

“And it would appear they had engaged in a gunfight with an unknown assailant. There is no known cause for the outburst. Thankfully no one was harmed as the scene unfolded. Please if you have any information about Jamison Fawkes aka junkrat or his accomplice Mako Rutledge aka roadhog, please call the number below.” 

I eyed the phone on my table wondering if I should turn them in. After careful contemplation, I decided against it, if not for them the french woman could have killed me. I sighed leaning my head back. How had I managed to get into such a crazed situation today? I was simply walking down the street in hopes to get some food and the next thing I remember was a shot ringing out close to my head. Of course, I had taken cover instantly, it wasn't my first time being shot at after all. The woman followed me, no matter how hard I tried to lose her she always found me. I was grateful for the crazy man's help, and the cowboys.

“Can you believe it? A cowboy.” I chuckled looking down at my cat who had come to sit at my feet “I can't even remember the man's name, he was mighty cute tho. You should have seen him moo.” The cat looked at me uninterested before letting out a meow and walking away. Running my hands through my hair I closed my eyes, the exhaustion of the excitement hitting me.

My eyes shot open. Something felt very wrong about the air around me. I sat for a moment staring into the darkness, the dull light of the t.v brightening a small space before me. Squinting I peered into the blackness behind the t.v. I could feel a cold breeze brush against my face, I noticed my window was wide open. I glanced back into the darkened hall trying to get my eyes to adjust.

“What are you looking for?” I whispered to myself trying to calm my now racing heart. I stood up and carefully began walking towards my bedroom. Before I was able to get too far, my front door slammed open the sound of the lock cracking with the sudden force. I let out a shocked scream turning to the intruder. There in the doorway was the cowboy. His frame almost completely blocked out the light from the hall behind him.

Get down now!” He shouted at me pulling out a gun quickly. My eyes widened as I listened. Shots rang out causing a deafening bang. I heard a grunt from the darkened hall behind me. I felt a cold hand yanking me quickly out of the apartment.

“Wait no!” I struggled free and ran back into the apartment. I searched around frantically before I found what I wanted, the cowboy had entered the doorway once again watching me with a panicked look on his face. I picked up the cat and ran out with him. We didn't speak for awhile as we ran out of the building and I followed him through a series of streets.

“You went back for a god damn cat?!” He stopped panting. I held the scared cat to my chest giving him a glare.

“She's my baby.”

“You have got to be kidding me.” His annoyance seemed to bring his accent out more, each word causing a warming sensation through my body. He pointed towards a car and pulled out a set of keys.

“What no horse cowboy?” I joked causing him to throw me an unimpressed ‘ha’ He opened the door and shut it behind me. The cat was tense nails digging into my back as the car sped down the streets. The drive was silent as we moved. The building fading into lines of trees. I could see the facility not too far down the street. If you didn't know it was there you would almost be able to look right past it. 

“I guess I owe you thanks,” I muttered scratching the cat's ear.

“That you do darlin’ I saved your ass out there.” I crinkled my nose.

“Well if you wanna be cocky about it never mind.” the car slowed as we pulled up “who was that back there? How did you know someone was in my house?”

“I was given orders to follow you. I had seen them move their way through your window, it was open not safe in the city you know.” I clicked my tongue and let out a sigh.

“Well if everyone would just leave me the fuck alone, I'd be able to leave all my windows open if I wanted.”

“Well you don't get that luxury”

“Leave this place just to find myself right back here,” I muttered slamming the door behind me.

“It's late, there's a room already prepared for you.”

“Already?”

“Soldier knew you'd end up here in the end. You should have listened in the first place puddin’” He looked back at me as I stood still by the car “well common stop standing around already I'm tired.” Taking a deep breath I accepted the defeat. I once again owned Overwatch thanks for saving my ass in the face of certain death. I followed the man through a set of doors and down a hall. After a few twists and turns, we stopped outside a small door. The cowboy opened it revealing a simply decorated room. There was a simple t.v on one end with a small couch barely big enough for two. The bed was nothing impressive but good enough for one. I placed the cat on the ground and watched her run, her nails sliding on the cool tile beneath her. She found her way under the bed and hid there out of sight. 

“You'll be retrieved in the morning to further discuss your situation.”

“Retrieved? What am I a package now?” I arched my eyebrow giving him an unimpressed look “You're not very nice to a lady are you?”

“Get some sleep.” He shut the door behind him, the sound of his footsteps faded as he moved further down the hall. I moved towards the bed throwing myself onto it. I rubbed my face taking in a sharp breath as I did so. My eyes slowly grew heavy as I faded into sleep.

**

“Awe uncle! Do I have to?” The little girl cried clutching her teddy to her chest. The older man looked down at her and nodded solemnly adjusting his glasses on his nose.

“You know we have to.” The little girl propped herself up on the cold metal bed. Her uncle positioned himself in front of her needle in hand. She winced as the tiny sharp pain shot through her arm. The strange sensation of fluid filling her veins was almost just as painful. It always made the little girl feel strange after the injection, she was far too young to understand exactly what it was her uncle was injecting into her system. He took a few steps back and watched her anxiously.

“Can I go play now?” The older man shook his head.

“You know the routine.”

“I wanna go play!” The young girl crossed her arms and stared at the man pouting.

“You can play as soon as you do what you're meant to.” She narrowed her eyes at him.

“Promise?”

“I promise.” she shut her eyes and focused hard. It was something he always demanded it was a strange request but not the strangest thing the elderly man has asked. She opened her eyes and found herself behind the man, she hadn't realized she had moved behind him. A smile crept on his face.

“Good girl, now go play. We'll have lunch in a few.” The little girl smiled and ran off. 

The man moved to his computer and typed in a few things. He glanced at the vial of fluid he had injected the young girl with. He reached for the phone and dialed a number, not noticing the little girl curiously glancing around the corner into his lab.

“Hello.”

“Yes. yes. The experiments are going exactly as planned. I think I've perfected the serum. It may be just what you need.” The little girl quickly lost interest in spying on her elder and went to play.

 

**

The sun shone through the window without mercy. It was bright, making it impossible to stay asleep. I got up groaning rubbing my eyes.

“Stupid dreams,” I whispered to myself. Glancing around the room, memories from the night before rushed into my mind. Before I could do anything a loud knock came from the door. 

“Yes?” I called out sitting up letting out a small stretch. The door opened with a slight creak. The cowboy peaked his head in.

“You decent?” I couldn't help but laugh at the man. He had his eyes diverted from me, as though seeing me would cause him to burn alive right there on the spot.

“Well, I have all my clothing on if that's what you're asking,” I smiled pushing off the bed. My eyes trailed over his body. I hadn't really seen him well the night before, the sunlight seemed to paint him in a different light. He was a very handsome man. His skin was tanned. His eyes were a deep brown, matching his hair. He stood tall, his broad shoulders almost filled the doorway. I couldn't help but question what he looked like under the shirt he was wearing.

“Ahem,” He snapped me out of my unclean thoughts “You done staring darling?” I could hear the slight amusement in his voice. My cheeks turned bright red, Diverting my eyes to the ground I tried to play it off.

“Never seen a guy so set on dressing like a cowboy before.” This gave me an annoyed stare from the handsome man

“Soldier is ready to speak to you.” I mentally slapped myself for my comment. I felt nervous around the man, I felt the need to impress him. It was a frustrating feeling as I never felt the need to impress anyone. I was always in trouble for my smart ass remarks, and my inability to not use sarcasm threw me into a few uncomfortable situations. I nodded and followed him down the hall. My nerves slowly building up, curious just exactly how much these people knew about me. The past I tried so hard to hide. The past I ran from for years, just how much could they truly know. My uncle worked for a questionable man. I could only hope that what Overwatch knew was not very detailed. Perhaps I could find a way to talk myself out of the situation I hoped one day I would be not be tossed into.


	2. unreal

I entered a large office, much different from Winston's lab. It was almost completely bare except for a large bookcase a filing cabinet and a very large oak desk that sat in the middle. Soldier 76 sat at the desk his visor shone brightly in the dim light of the office.

“Sit.” His voice was low and demanding. His demeanor alone was intimidating. I sat across from him the chair was cold sending a chill through my body. I heard heavy footsteps behind me I glanced behind me to see the cowboy standing in the door. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't seem to remember his name. Behind him was the familiar figure of Winston.

“Let me be clear, I will not be used as some weapon,” I stated before anyone could say anything. The soldier nodded at me the footsteps behind me growing closer till the two men were on either side of the soldier. 

“We don't want that. What we want, what we see is a huge asset to our team.” I narrowed my eyes at him playing his words over in my head. An asset to the team sounded better than being used as a weapon. I knew it was simply a play on words, he wanted to make joining the team sound appealing. 

“The moment I feel something's off I'm out,” I spoke carefully, I didn't really have much of a choice in the end. If I left I'd end up having to run for the rest of my life, no more being able to just be cautious about the people around me. I wouldn't be able to settle down in one place. My secret was out.

“We will need to perform some tests on you. Nothing serious just enough for us to better understand how you work..” He looked at the two bodies beside him, his eyes landing on the cowboy. “McCree show the kid around.” I narrowed my eyes at soldier as he called me a kid. McCree, I repeated his name over and over in my head trying to remember the name. He let out a sigh at the task given to him. 

“Let's go, darling.” He pushed past me stopping at the door waiting for me to follow. I looked back at Winston and soldier. It was hard to believe the sudden turn of events that have happened in the past 24 hours. I walked towards McCree following a few steps behind him. 

McCree pointed around naming rooms as we passed them. I listened intently, more interested in his southern drawl than anything he was actually saying. His voice was almost soothing every syllable he spoke sounded as smooth as honey. 

“This here is my room, you're welcome to come and see me anytime.” He winked throwing me that charming smile.

“That work with all the girls?” I teased him. I knew his type, charming his way into your pants with a few sweet words.

“Oh that hurts sugar, think so lowly of me.”

“I know your type cowboy. You know you're undeniably attractive, and that damned accent of yours incredibly sexy.” I spoke without thinking.

“Well thank you.” He smiled once again I tried my hardest not to give into the charm that seemed to just ooze off him.

“I'm not like most girls, I'm not going to fall for that shit partner.” I spun on my heels and began walking away “I'll show myself around.” The man didn't bother chasing after me or denying my observation. I smiled to myself feeling good that I told the man off. I wasn't about to fall for another womanizer, been there, done that.

I roamed the halls aimlessly finding myself lost. Every hall I walked down looked exactly the same as the last. Eggshell white and pale blue tile floors. The fluorescent lighting almost gave the building a hospital feel. I turned down a hall and spotted a figure down the hall. I walked a bit quicker hoping to catch up to the person. As I grew closer to them I noticed they were wearing bright pink pants with a duller pink top to match. The girl looked young no more than 19 at most. 

“E-excuse me?” She turned around surprised by the company. There were pink marks on each of her cheeks. Her long brown hair fell around her shoulders. She flashed me a wide smile.

“Hi! You're the new girl, right?” her voice was lightly accented, I couldn't pinpoint her accent exactly but it was certainly asian of sorts.

“New and extremely lost,” I said sheepishly. She laughed at me and wrapped an arm around my shoulder.

“Where are you looking to go?”

“Winston's lab.”

“Oh well just go straight and turn left, third door on your right!” She flashed me another smile.

“You look familiar,” I started. My eyes widened as I realized who the girl was “Oh my god your that gamer, D.Va right?” She nodded her cheeks turning pink.

“That's me”

“You kicked ass in the last starcraft competition. Always good to see a fellow girl gamer kicking ass.” She thanked me and we talked briefly about games. I remembered that I had somewhere to be, I waved her off and turned to leave.

Following the D.va’s directions, I finally found my way to WInston's lab. I entered the large room to find Winston and Soldier standing over a computer. Both were so lost in what they were looking at that they didn't notice me enter. I took a few steps in and coughed trying to get their attention. Soldier was the first to look up.

“You're late.”

“I got lost,” I muttered not caring to explain how I walked away from McCree unwilling to deal with his womanizer ways. There were no further questions asked. Soldier stood up, Winston quickly walked towards me. The testing began. I patiently sat through every test they had laid out for me. Winston letting out the oddly fascinated sigh as he noticed different aspects of my body's capabilities. I was used to being poked with needles and thrown into different strange machines. It didn't phase me anymore. I closed my eyes as the machine beeped and hummed around me. It was a large contraption almost resembling an MRI, but a bright flashing light flashed repeatedly around me.

The tests took only an hour and a half. I was relieved when they ended. No matter how used to them I was it wasn't fun to have to go through. 

“That's all for today. I have plenty to go through for the next few days. You'll be training with soldier.” Winston spoke cheerfully. I glanced over at the white haired man. His arms were across his chest the muscles bulging out. I couldn't help but choke back a sharp breath. The man was very well built, muscles prominent.

“I'll be seeing you tomorrow at 6.”

“In the morning?!” I asked praying to god he didn't really mean I had to be up that early. I usually slept in till ten in the mornings, I didn't even know six in the morning existed.

“Yes in the morning. Be there soldier. Don't be late.” I nodded and waved them off. 

I spent the rest of my day roaming the facility trying to get a hang of the twists and turns of the building. It wouldn't be easy to learn my way around, but with due time I'm sure, I'd be able to get a hang of it. I had met a few other agents as I roamed the halls. Mercy of whom I had learned was the main medic that went out on missions with the team. D.va and tracer were talking with her when I spotted them all. I chatted with the two women for awhile before deciding to find my way back to my room. 

It took awhile and a few wrong turns before I finally found my way back into my room. I entered it and gratefully laid back on my bed. I sighed at the discomfort I felt in my jeans. I hadn't gotten the chance to grab any clothing before I was yanked out of my room. I slid off my pants letting out a relieved sigh. I laid back in bed and let sleep slowly take over.

**

 

“This isn't normal!” The girl yelled angrily. The older man looked fragile and breakable. His old wrinkled hands shaking slightly as she stared him down.

“you're special. Very special. You have a gift.” 

“A gift?! I'm a freak of nature!” she clenched her fists trying to fight back the urge to pummel the man's face in. He had done this to her. He had taken away any resemblance of normal in her life. When she was younger she didn't know what was happening. As the years pass and she became older she becomes wiser to the things the cruel man was doing to her. All the tests all the needles, every little bit of it lead to this moment. Lead to the anger and fear that overwhelmed her life. There was a knock on the door causing the two to turn and glance at the door.

“Come in.” A man entered the room. He was tall, towering over the teenager making her look like a small child once again. He was extremely handsome, if not for her anger she would have probably rushed to pretty herself up just at a chance to pull his eyes towards her. He may have been an older man but she was a teenager, of course, she wanted the attention of handsome men. 

“Are you ready to go?” The stranger asked his eyes falling upon the girl before him.

“Go?” The anger drained from the girl and was quickly replaced with confusion and fear. She began to back up finding herself quickly cornered between the two men. They both eyed her, the elder flashing a small smile and the stranger staring coldly at her. 

“This is the man that helped make this all possible.” She glanced between the two her anger once again coming back.

“You say that like its a good thing!” She wasn't yelling anymore but even to her the tone in her voice was menacing. The older man took a careful step towards her. With a quick movement, she stepped behind the man wrapping his arm behind his back.

“P-please don't.” The man's voice was now filled with fear. The girl saw nothing but red. Anger clouded her judgment. Any reasonable thinking was thrown out the window. With a sickening crack, she broke his arm. He let out a scream, the stranger making a move to grab the girl. She was much faster than he anticipated. She moved around him slamming her foot on his sending a sharp pain to course up his leg. By the time he composed himself again the girl was gone. He glanced down at the older man writhing in pain on the floor.

“You have failed me, old man.” He kneeled down and wrapped a hand around his throat. The elderly's eye lit up with fear and worry.

“No. No please. Give it time, she will come around. Please just-” He was cut off as the crack of his neck sounded through the room. The man stood up wiping his hands on his pants as if to wipe away the sickening deed he just committed. He glanced around the room sighing. It would not be easy but he would find the girl. It was after all his blood that helped her become what she was. She was much more impressive than he had thought, a great weapon for his future plans

**

 

“Let's go soldier.” 76's voice echoed through the empty gym “Go. Go. Go.” I moved quickly through the obstacle course trying to keep my mind off the searing pain coursing through my legs. I wasn't used to the sudden activity. My body ached and screamed for me to stop, I pushed through the pain refusing to let it get the best of me. I stopped before the man planting my hands on my legs. He clicked the button on his stopwatch glancing at it carefully before speaking.

“Better than I thought soldier.” I felt a tinge of pride well up in me, he waved a hand gesturing for me to follow behind him. We entered a room attached to the gym, inside was a slightly smaller duplicate of the gym I was just in. Instead of an obstacle course, there was a series of punching bags and a small boxing ring in the center. I spotted the cowboy swinging a few punches at the bag before him. I couldn't help but notice how each muscle rippled under his shirt. The sweat that stained it only bringing more detail to his well-chiseled body. He didn't bother to glance up as we entered. 

“Enter the ring.” Soldier demanded as he himself entered. He stood at one end readying his arms up to a punching position.. I entered the ring across from him watching him carefully waiting for his next order. “Try to knock me down.” I could almost hear the cocky smile that was more than likely spreading across his face. I hesitated briefly.

“I don't think-”

“Come on don't be a girl, fight me soldier” his words annoyed me. Who the hell did he think he was? I let my restraint fade away as I moved towards him quickly almost unseen. I swung a punch at the man throwing his balance off. He managed to quickly find his footing again and swung at me. His fist hit my side causing me to let out a pained yelp. I didn't expect there to be so much force behind his hit. I moved quickly around him once again forcing my way to his back. I quickly threw a punch into his side and kicked the back of his knee. The man fell to the ground allowing me enough time to reach over and twist his arm behind his back. I stood there breathing heavily as I held him there. I noticed McCree had stopped his punching and was now staring in awe at me and the soldier.

Well done!” There was no hiding the impressed tone of soldiers voice. My eyes were still on the cowboy. His body glistening with sweat for some reason making him unreasonably pleasing to the eyes. He flashed a crooked smile.

“Ain't never seen a girl fight like that.” He's pleased tone caused a strange tingling warmth to grow inside me “plan on letting him go anytime soon, darling?” I shook my head realizing I was still holding soldier under me. I quickly let go and took a few steps back. I was hard to pry my eyes off McCree. Soldier turned to face me and gave me a solid pat on the shoulder.

“Your abilities were not exaggerated.” I gave him a slight bow appreciating the praise. “Tomorrow same time soldier.” I nodded as he slowly left the room. I found my way out of the ring and leaned against the wall catching my breath. I could still feel McCree's eyes on me. I glanced up and flashed him a smile.

“Never seen a girl before cowboy?” I teased, he quickly diverted his gaze.

“Takes a lot to take the big guy down.” He finally spoke. I shrugged my shoulders

“Well, I ain't exactly your average everyday girl.” I stood up and began to leave the room. The cowboy disappearing for a few minutes. I was halfway down the hallway before I heard a slight clink. I turned to see the cowboy walking quickly towards me. I noticed the small spurs on the back of his cowboy boots, the source of the sound.

“What's your story sugar?” He asked curiously looping his fingers in his belt. I read it and stifled a laugh, it read BAMF. I turned and began to walk again.

“I don't have a story.”

“Clearly, there's some story behind you.” I turned to see his deep brown eyes watching me curiously.

“Did you not listen to me yesterday?” He rubbed a hand on the back his neck. It wasn't till now that I noticed he had a metal arm, “How'd you lose it?” I asked quickly forgetting my previous statement.

“Lost it in a bust.” He said. I eyed him curiously hoping for him to continue. He flashed me a smile “Share your story and I'll tell you how it went down.” I sighed and rolled my eyes.

“Not interested in telling a complete stranger about my life,” I muttered. 

“Then at least grace me with your presence for lunch darling.” I stopped and turned to him arching my eyebrow at him.

“You Really didn't hear a damn thing I said yesterday? I told you I have no interest in getting to know you.” I laughed and shook my head “Thanks, partner but I'll pass.” I tried my best at a southern accent. I pointed my fingers at him aiming them like a gun before making a ‘pew’ sound and turned to walk away. I could feel his eyes watching me as I walked away. 

Finding the cafeteria was much easier than I had expected. It was surprisingly full. I wasn't aware there were this many people in the facility, as it was so big it never seemed that busy in the halls. I walked off towards the large steel fridge at stood in the corner of the room. I swung it open only to spot a large assortment of various food. I was amazed by all of it, it was more food than I was ever able to afford. The amount of food in the fridge was more than the all the food I'd eat in a month. I curiously sifted through it before grabbing a pre-made fruit salad. 

After glancing around I found a small red couch sitting on the far end of the room away from most of the people. I wasn't much for being social, I rather enjoyed keeping to myself. The way I saw it the more I kept to myself the less trouble and drama I found myself in. Perhaps it was more of a survival habit than anything. I sat in the chair feeling my body quickly sink into it. It was extremely comfortable. I began picking away at the salad enjoying the sweet flavor of the fruit. I noticed a small dull barely audible hum grow closer to me. I glanced around and noticed an omnic moving towards me.

“Greetings.” The omnics voice was very soothing.

“Hello.” I tried not to stare, I had seemed many omnics in my life, but this omnic was not like most walking on two feet. Instead, he was floating gracefully in front of me. his arms gently resting on his crossed legs. Strange orbs hovered around him.

“My name is Zenyatta.”

“Per-”

“Persephone. I know.” he moved closer to me his presence alone bringing sudden relaxation to me.

“Is there something I can help you with?” I asked curiously, he certainly couldn't be here just to chat.

“I just wanted to see you for myself. A strange energy flows around you.” He spoke softly. I sat uncomfortable not knowing exactly what to say “I do daily meditation with a few peers, it would be nice to see you there.” He waved goodbye and with that he was gone. I sat there thrown off by the encounter. Shaking my head I finished the fruit in my hand and left the cafeteria. 

My mind was filled with thoughts as I roamed the halls aimlessly finally finding myself in my room. I entered only to be greeted by a small gift basket laying on my bed. My cat carefully crawled out from under the bed letting out a cautious meow. I smiled and leaned down to give him a scrub. Turning my attention to the bag I was relieved to see a small bag of cat food sitting on it. Two bright pink bowls were sitting near it as well A small note attached to it.

“For the ball of fur you almost killed yourself for.” I read the note out loud letting out a small laugh. As I picked up the bag my cat went wild at the idea of finally getting fed.

“I'm sorry buddy. I didn't even think of food.” I dipped one of the bowls into the bag and placed it down in front of the now constantly meowing cat. I watched happily as he devoured the food. It may seem strange to some people that I risked my life to save the animal but I had her for years and refused to give her up. She was a part of my family. I looked back at the gift basket. There was a formally typed out note on it that basically read welcome to overwatch. I rolled my eyes. Surely this was just a little extra ass kissing Winston had decided upon doing. I didn't think soldier had any idea of it as he didn't seem much like the kind of guy to do such a thing. The basket contained a few bags of chips some fancy carbonated juices and a few other things. I place it on a nightstand beside the bed and sat down sighing. My body was aching after the day of training I had been put through. 

“This is crazy. Almost unreal.” I spoke aloud to my cat knowing full well he wasn't listening. Though talking to him made me feel a little more sane than admitting I was talking to myself. I went over the events in my mind. It was crazy to think a single moment twisted my life upside down. The one idea that lingered in my mind was just how had the french woman had found me. Who was she? Who was her boss? How the hell did she even know about me? There were so many questions I had but no one I knew to ask. Through all this McCrees face found its way into my mind. I hated that I couldn't get rid of him from my thoughts. Something about him was very appealing. Perhaps it was his perfectly chiseled jaw. Perhaps it was his deep brown eyes that seemed to draw me in. Either way, something about him caused a weird sensation to form in me. He was an interesting man, to say the least. I began to make up an idea in my mind on just how he had lost his arm, how he came to have the metal bionic arm he had now.


	3. Surprise

Days turned into weeks as I stayed with Overwatch. I had grown accustomed to the base, learning where everything was. I trained hard with soldier practicing my abilities to the best I could. For years I bared these abilities but never used them. I had to learn how to control my speed and strength. Every day that passed I grew more comfortable in soldier intimidating presence. He was not much for talking and getting personal. I personally enjoyed that aspect of him. I kept to myself often and having someone not wish to know my whole life's story was nice. 

I roamed the halls after spending a few hours with Winston in his lab. He had continued to perform tests on me, his interest peaking at a slight abnormality in my blood cells. I told him of my super strength and speed, telling him that's all I had gained from my uncle's experiments. I didn't question him when he would tell me about all the things he found. To be frank he used words far too big for my simple little brain. I stopped in front of a large window looking into the facility's shooting range. I noticed a figure standing in the center of the room. McCree was carefully eyeing a few targets at the end of the range. I watched him curiously as he steadied his hand. I couldn't help but laugh as I watched him. He looked like a cowboy straight from the movies. The way he drew his gun and even the way he stood reminded me of an old western movie. I found myself making my way into the shooting range. I stood at the far end of the range watching him as he shot with precise aim.

“Like what you see?” I looked away shy that I had been caught staring. He put his gun in the holster at his side and glanced up at me. A small coy smile played at his lips.

“You're a good shot cowboy.” I diverted my eyes from the floor to the targets at the end of the range. Each target had clusters of holes all centralized in the same area.

“Natural born talent darling.” I laughed and rolled my eyes. “I can do more with than shoot with these quick fingers.”

“Don't get cocky,” I ignored the second half of his statement not looking to feed his ego. He walked towards me the spurs on his boots making a light metallic sound as he did. He whipped his gun out with lightning speed and held the handle towards me.

“You shoot?” I held my hands up waving the gun away. 

“I have never shot a gun my whole life.” He moved towards me closing the space between us. He gently placed the gun in my hand.

“Here let me show you. Is always safer to know, never know when you'll get in a sticky situation a gun may save you.” I laughed out loud at his comment causing a confused look on his face. I simply shook my head and glanced at the gun in my hand. The metal was cold and smooth under my fingers. It felt heavier than I had expected. 

“Just point and shoot?” the statement sounded dumber out loud than it did in my head. McCree positioned himself behind me, moving my body in a position he claimed to be ‘perfect for killin’. The closeness of his body caused a warmth to wash over me. I could feel the armor pressing firm against my chest. His metal arm was cold as he pressed it against mine showing me where to position the gun. His breath was warm against my ear as he spoke, a sweet cologne drifted off him drifting up my nose. I took in a deep breath savoring the scent.

“Darlin?” His voice caught my attention. I hadn't noticed myself begin to lean into him slowly “You alright?” I nodded my head and cleared my throat.

“Just feeling a bit dizzy,” I smiled and took a deep breath trying my best to play along with my lie. His eyes watched me filled with concern.

“Perhaps you need to eat? Been a long day.” I laughed.

“Tryin to get me to eat lunch with you again?” 

“Can't blame a guy for trying.” He shot me a charming smile making my heart flutter. 

“Fine, but only if you promise to tell me about your arm?” I ended the statement as a question the curiosity really eating away at me. I had expected him to want me to share something in return but much to my shock he just agreed. I followed him to the lunchroom as we made small talk. I listened intently to the man's voice every word sounded like honey on his lips. We both grabbed food and found a small table to sit at, separated slightly from the rest of the agents in the room.

“So?” I questioned eying his arm, “How'd it happen?”

“Back in my younger years, I was part of a gang. The dreadlock gang, they were a bunch of ruthless criminals. Didn't matter who you were or how old you were, if you got in the way of them they'd teach you a lesson.” He started he watched out the window as he remembered his past, “We were in the middle of a big arms deal when out of nowhere Overwatch agents ambushed us. Most of us fought back. My arm was injured terribly in the fight. When they captured me they gave me a deal pretty much death or join. Upon joining they gave me this bad boy!” He flashed a smile and tapped the arm. I reached out curiously my fingers touching the cool metal. 

“Can you feel?” A somewhat sad look crossed his face.

“Nah, it's just a big old chunk of metal can’t feel a thing.” I felt bad for him, I couldn't imagine having to learn to live without a part of me. His eyes focused on my fingers brushing his arm. I pulled away sheepishly. There was an awkward silence that filled the air before I finally spoke up.

“My parents died when I was younger.” I started “My uncle took me in. He was a scientist of sorts, he was hired by some stranger. I just happened to be the only test subject that wouldn't question his actions. That's why I have the strength and speed you saw.” McCree looked at me surprised by my sudden willingness to open up to him.

“So he made you into a super soldier?” I couldn't help but let out a loud sarcastic laugh.

“He'd have liked that term.” I looked down at my hands “It was hard, growing up with him. I couldn't have friends or go to school like a normal kid. By the time I wised up to what he was doing it was too late. I left and never went back.” McCree sat there silently taking in the story I had given him.

“There you are.” A gruff voice called out, I glanced over to see soldier walking towards the two of us. McCree stood up and grabbed the now empty tray between us. Soldier watched him closely as he left without a word.

“What can I do you for sir?” 

“Winston needs to see you in the lab.” I stood up and followed behind him. The walk was silent, it wasn't an uncomfortable silence I welcomed it. I was used to silencing with soldier he didn't speak unless he felt it was needed. I didn't mind it as I found mindless conversation just to fill silence was more uncomfortable than anything. We stopped outside the large doors watching them carefully slide open. 

Winston sat at his desk, the light of the computer screen reflecting on his glasses. I scanned his desk noticing multiple empty jars of what appeared to be peanut butter. There were orange lids neatly piled together. Winston glanced up at us as we walked in.

“Ah, there you are.” He straightened his back adjusting his glasses. I had come to find that this was a habit for him, somewhat of a tick, “I’ve spotted some strange anomalies in your cells.” I walked over to him peering curiously at the screen before him. There was a chart of some sorts lines of different colors in various scribbled lines. None of what I was seeing made any sense to me causing me to look away quickly.

“Okay…” I spoke slowly not sure what else to say. The lack of understanding what the strange charts meant didn't help.

“Well, I was wondering if perhaps you remembered if your uncle wrote any of his studies down?” 

“He typed a lot on his computer but I'm not entirely sure what it was he wrote.” I started “I can only assume it was his studies. The only other thing was the phone calls he'd make to the person paying him.”

“Paying? Your uncle worked with someone?” soldiers voice joined in curiosity obvious in his voice.

“No, he worked alone. Someone paid him for everything. Gave him the technology he needed.” I watched Winston ponder my words before he spoke again. The words that left his mouth causing a tinge of fear to creep up on me.

“Well then, the only option is to talk to your uncle himself.” I swallowed hard “I'm sure he'll be more willing to speak to you than us, we'll need your help.” I stared wide eyed. My uncle was no doubt an old wrinkle man by now. Nothing of the young stern man he once was. When I was young I feared him, his cold glaring eyes and constant angry scowl scared me. As I grew older he looked weaker and weaker, I didn't fear him anymore yet the idea of seeing him again brought immense fear. I left years ago angry and spiteful. I left the man behind with a broken arm and no apology.

“I don't think... I don't think I can do that.” I muttered fidgeting with my fingers.

“You have no choice.” Soldiers voice was more demanding now pushing me to shoot him a hateful glare.

“I’ll go. Only for the information, he may have on me. I also want to go to my apartment. I'd like to get some clothing and necessities I need.” I hissed before turning and leaving. I was angry and scared all at the same time. Angry that I was being pushed to do something I was so uncomfortable with. Scared to see the man who had changed and ruled so much of my life. It was a part of my past I wanted nothing to do with. I had left and never gave it a second thought. I never called or even wrote my uncle, I couldn't bring myself to do so. He was my only family but I felt betrayed and used by him. It was hard to left go, to know you were nothing more than a test subject to someone was hard to accept. It wasn't a hard childhood, he didn't beat me. I had a good meal every night and a warm bed to sleep in, yet it was only to keep me alive. I never got gifts for my birthday, never received a warming hug when I'd fall and hurt myself. It was the little things in the end that really hit me.

I found myself in the training room. My fists were clenched by heart racing as I began swinging blindly at the closest punching bag I could find. I didn't grab gloves before I did, the dry leather of the bag pushed hard against my knuckles as I swung. Each hit sending slight pain to shoot through my hands. 

“Woah woah there.” The voice suddenly called out from the room. I ignored it still swinging at the bag. McCree walked up beside me holding his hands out cautiously. He watched for a few seconds before grabbing my arms. He gripped them hard as I tried to pull away and continue my stress relief on the bag. He turned me to face him his eyes watching me sternly.

“Let me go, cowboy,” I muttered wanting nothing to do with people at the moment. He flashed me a smile throwing me off. 

“You're cute when you're angry.” His comment confused me causing my anger to lessen slightly. His smile never left his face. I couldn't help but feel my heart flutter. His smile seemingly perfect complimenting his perfect face. His teeth white against his tanned skin. Carefully he pulled his hands from my shoulders, his hands grabbing mine. His touch was gentle, almost surprising coming from him. 

“I'm fine.” I couldn't help but watch him carefully as he inspected my slightly bloodied knuckles. He looked focused.

“You're bleeding.”

“It's only my hands I'm sure I can deal with it.” I pulled my hands away instantly wishing I could still feel the warmth of his fingers on mine. 

“Whats got you so riled up?” I wasn't sure what it was about him that made me want to just spill everything to him. Perhaps it was just the fact that he was just so goddamn attractive. Maybe it was the accent. Something about him just made me want to open up to him about my entire life. I fought the urge and took a deep breath.

“I get the thrilling joy of going to see my uncle. Winston wants to talk to him about his studies” I exaggerated the word studies. I didn't consider anything my uncle did a study. I believe that a study, in the end, proves something shows something useful. What my uncle did were tests. He didn't know what would happen when he injected the strange fluids into my body. He had no idea what he was doing, all he saw was the money being thrown at him.

“Not a huge fan of him?” I shook my head avoiding his intense gaze. “Tell you what girl I’ll come along.” I looked up at him surprised.

“What? Why?”

“Well, Winston seems to be impressed by your uncle. It's always nice to have someone with you who shares your distaste.” I felt a small smile pull at the corner of my mouth. It was a simple gesture but that's all that mattered to me. He smiled alongside me and held out his hand. “Now come, let's get you cleaned up.” I wrapped my arm in his feeling my heart begin to race. The smell of his familiar cologne giving me somewhat comforting feeling.

The day raced by. McCree had helped me stop the bleeding of my knuckles, soon after leaving me to go training with soldier. Before I knew it the day had come to go see my uncle. I didn't sleep at all the night before. I couldn't, I was on edge the whole night unable to find the sweet serenity of sleep. Winston had agreed to allow McCree to join letting soldier stay behind. The older man didn't seem to care, in fact, he seemed almost relieved to be able to stay behind. I'm sure he was just pleased to be able to do more important things than deal with some old man who probably couldn't remember much about his younger years.

I was shocked to hear before we left that Winston was unable to go. I half expected him to want to reschedule for another day, but instead, he told McCree to keep an eye on me and demanded we bring back anything we could. We got into a small black SUV and McCree sped off.

The drive felt like hours. Each building that passed seeming more sinister as we moved closer and closer to our destination. To my dismay, the car finally pulled to a stop. My hands were shaking as I pulled open the door, a soft hand rested on my shoulder. I turned to face McCree my hand still on the open door.

“It’ll be alright darling.” He flashed me his signature charming smile. It gave me a slight feeling of ease for a moment. We both moved out of the vehicle walking up the familiar driveway I had played on so many times in my childhood. I took a deep breath before lifting a shaky fist to the door and knocking. Time felt like it slowed as I heard footsteps slowly move towards the door. I held my breath preparing to face the familiar face soon to greet me.

I was surprised to see the person answering the door was not my uncle. I watched in confusion as an elderly woman answered. 

“Yes?” Her voice was slightly shaky as she spoke.

“Uhm, yes hi.” I started trying to speak calmly “is Mr.Henderson here?” She looked at my eyes wide.

“Well I’ll be damned I haven't heard that name in years!” She smiled and held out her hand “how do you know him, deary?”

“He's my uncle ma’am.” her face softened slightly as she smiled sadly.

“Oh dear. Oh dear.” She spoke quietly “You don't know do you?”

“Know what?”

“Your uncle was killed a few years back, dear.” I felt my heart drop to my stomach. How had he died? Was it my fault? Did I kill my uncle? There was no sadness only shock. Shocked that my uncle was actually dead. I had wished death on him so much as a child, yet never actually wanted it to happen. I could hear McCree questioning the woman, their voices distant sounds as everything around me seemed to fade. A sudden wave of loneliness hit me. I had no family left. No one to run to, no one to run to when things went wrong. Though my uncle was never important to me, or even treated me as family. It was the thought that the last blood relative I had was gone. I would have never run to him or seek comfort in me, but realizing that the only person you could actually call family was now dead was a shock. It wasn't till I felt a warm touch on my shoulders that I realized tears streaming down my face. McCree was watching me concerned half in the house half out. I hadn't noticed the woman allowing us in. I hadn't heard a single thing they had talked about.

“You good?” I nodded and followed into the house. I was shocked to see it had barely changed since I lived here with my uncle. Almost everything was exactly as he left it. Upon further questioning, I found out the woman was a close friend of my uncles. It was surprising to find out as I had never seen my uncle with someone. Apparently, he left everything to her when he died. It almost made me laugh to hear. He left everything to a stranger rather than his own flesh and blood. The woman directed us to a far too familiar room. The door swung open into my uncle's office/lab. I was never sure what to call it as the metal table and stainless steel cabinet resembled a lab but the mahogany desk and large bookcase made it look like an office. A wave of nausea washed over me. Fear took over me. I knew it was silly but I could just see him coming through the door needle in hand ready to inject me with whatever it was he wanted to. I fell to my knees unable to stay on them much longer. Hot tears stinging my face.

“Mind giving us a moment?” McCree's voice broke the silence surrounding me. The lady said something agreeing to his request and left. I felt his hand gently touch my shoulder. I hadn't noticed till now that I was shaking “Take a deep breath darling.”

I inhaled deeply his words soothing me. He spoke a bit more trying his best to calm me down. Each word that slipped through his lips brought me a sense of ease. I finally tore my eyes from the floor and looked up at him. His beautiful face filled with worry. I forced a smile, my shaking slowly subsiding.

“You good?” I nodded as he helped me to my feet.

“I’m sorry. I just, god I don't know.” I muttered shaking my head. I glanced around the room memories filling my head.

“It's never easy going back to your past.” He walked over to the old laptop that sat on the desk in the middle of the room, “were damn lucky she didn't get rid of anything.” I nodded agreeing. I looked over at the cabinet and made my way towards it. I carefully opened it revealing what appeared to be a small fridge. I opened it, large vials of different fluids sitting there as though it was just yesterday they had been placed inside it. I would feel McCree standing behind me eyeing it. 

“What is it?” he questioned.

“I have no idea, whatever it was he injected into me.” Some were a dark red almost like blood. Others were strange unnatural looking colors. McCree's arm brushed around me as he grabbed a few and shoved them in his pockets. I gave him a startled look.

“It’ll help Winston better understand what was done.” He turned as he spoke looking at the laptop, “now let's hope this had no password.” I could hear that damn charming smile in his voice. He stretched out his hands and pressed the power button. Much to our dismay, a password screen popped up. McCree sighed.

“I don't suppose you know the password do you?” I shook my head. He lifted his hat slightly and scratched his head placing it neatly once more above his head. I watched him as he searched through the desk drawers. After a few minutes of doing so, he finally let out a sigh and shut the laptop down taking it up in his arms.

“You're not going to do the movie thing and pray you get it right?” I half joked. He shook his head.

“This could hold everything you need to learn what exactly he did,” I smiled. We both left the room, the lady offered us to stay for lunch but I quickly denied. I had no interest in sitting in that house more than I had to. We waved her off and thanked her for being so helpful. The drive home was much better than the drive there. Finding out my uncle was dead had caused a great deal of unknown feelings for me. I could feel McCree shooting me glances here and there as he drove.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please let me know how you feel so far about the story dont be afraid to leave a comment I promise I dont bite... hard :p thank you for reading!! thank you for kudos


	4. Unwanted feelings

Days turned into weeks as I stayed with Overwatch. I had grown accustomed to the base, learning where everything was. I trained hard with soldier practicing my abilities to the best I could. For years I bared these abilities but never used them. I had to learn how to control my speed and strength. Every day that passed I grew more comfortable in soldier intimidating presence. He was not much for talking and getting personal. I personally enjoyed that aspect of him. I kept to myself often and having someone not wish to know my whole life's story was nice. 

I roamed the halls after spending a few hours with Winston in his lab. He had continued to perform tests on me, his interest peaking at a slight abnormality in my blood cells. I told him of my super strength and speed, telling him that's all I had gained from my uncle's experiments. I didn't question him when he would tell me about all the things he found. To be frank he used words far too big for my simple little brain. I stopped in front of a large window looking into the facility's shooting range. I noticed a figure standing in the center of the room. McCree was carefully eyeing a few targets at the end of the range. I watched him curiously as he steadied his hand. I couldn't help but laugh as I watched him. He looked like a cowboy straight from the movies. The way he drew his gun and even the way he stood reminded me of an old western movie. I found myself making my way into the shooting range. I stood at the far end of the range watching him as he shot with precise aim.

“Like what you see?” I looked away shy that I had been caught staring. He put his gun in the holster at his side and glanced up at me. A small coy smile played at his lips.

“You're a good shot cowboy.” I diverted my eyes from the floor to the targets at the end of the range. Each target had clusters of holes all centralized in the same area.

“Natural born talent darling.” I laughed and rolled my eyes. “I can do more with than shoot with these quick fingers.”

“Don't get cocky,” I ignored the second half of his statement not looking to feed his ego. He walked towards me the spurs on his boots making a light metallic sound as he did. He whipped his gun out with lightning speed and held the handle towards me.

“You shoot?” I held my hands up waving the gun away. 

“I have never shot a gun my whole life.” He moved towards me closing the space between us. He gently placed the gun in my hand.

“Here let me show you. Is always safer to know, never know when you'll get in a sticky situation a gun may save you.” I laughed out loud at his comment causing a confused look on his face. I simply shook my head and glanced at the gun in my hand. The metal was cold and smooth under my fingers. It felt heavier than I had expected. 

“Just point and shoot?” the statement sounded dumber out loud than it did in my head. McCree positioned himself behind me, moving my body in a position he claimed to be ‘perfect for killin’. The closeness of his body caused a warmth to wash over me. I could feel the armor pressing firm against my chest. His metal arm was cold as he pressed it against mine showing me where to position the gun. His breath was warm against my ear as he spoke, a sweet cologne drifted off him drifting up my nose. I took in a deep breath savoring the scent.

“Darlin?” His voice caught my attention. I hadn't noticed myself begin to lean into him slowly “You alright?” I nodded my head and cleared my throat.

“Just feeling a bit dizzy,” I smiled and took a deep breath trying my best to play along with my lie. His eyes watched me filled with concern.

“Perhaps you need to eat? Been a long day.” I laughed.

“Tryin to get me to eat lunch with you again?” 

“Can't blame a guy for trying.” He shot me a charming smile making my heart flutter. 

“Fine, but only if you promise to tell me about your arm?” I ended the statement as a question the curiosity really eating away at me. I had expected him to want me to share something in return but much to my shock he just agreed. I followed him to the lunchroom as we made small talk. I listened intently to the man's voice every word sounded like honey on his lips. We both grabbed food and found a small table to sit at, separated slightly from the rest of the agents in the room.

“So?” I questioned eying his arm, “How'd it happen?”

“Back in my younger years, I was part of a gang. The dreadlock gang, they were a bunch of ruthless criminals. Didn't matter who you were or how old you were, if you got in the way of them they'd teach you a lesson.” He started he watched out the window as he remembered his past, “We were in the middle of a big arms deal when out of nowhere Overwatch agents ambushed us. Most of us fought back. My arm was injured terribly in the fight. When they captured me they gave me a deal pretty much death or join. Upon joining they gave me this bad boy!” He flashed a smile and tapped the arm. I reached out curiously my fingers touching the cool metal. 

“Can you feel?” A somewhat sad look crossed his face.

“Nah, it's just a big old chunk of metal can’t feel a thing.” I felt bad for him, I couldn't imagine having to learn to live without a part of me. His eyes focused on my fingers brushing his arm. I pulled away sheepishly. There was an awkward silence that filled the air before I finally spoke up.

“My parents died when I was younger.” I started “My uncle took me in. He was a scientist of sorts, he was hired by some stranger. I just happened to be the only test subject that wouldn't question his actions. That's why I have the strength and speed you saw.” McCree looked at me surprised by my sudden willingness to open up to him.

“So he made you into a super soldier?” I couldn't help but let out a loud sarcastic laugh.

“He'd have liked that term.” I looked down at my hands “It was hard, growing up with him. I couldn't have friends or go to school like a normal kid. By the time I wised up to what he was doing it was too late. I left and never went back.” McCree sat there silently taking in the story I had given him.

“There you are.” A gruff voice called out, I glanced over to see soldier walking towards the two of us. McCree stood up and grabbed the now empty tray between us. Soldier watched him closely as he left without a word.

“What can I do you for sir?” 

“Winston needs to see you in the lab.” I stood up and followed behind him. The walk was silent, it wasn't an uncomfortable silence I welcomed it. I was used to silence with soldier he didn't speak unless he felt it was needed. I didn't mind it as I found mindless conversation just to fill silence was more uncomfortable than anything. We stopped outside the large doors watching them carefully slide open. 

Winston sat at his desk, the light of the computer screen reflecting on his glasses. I scanned his desk noticing multiple empty jars of what appeared to be peanut butter. There were orange lids neatly piled together. Winston glanced up at us as we walked in.

“Ah, there you are.” He straightened his back adjusting his glasses. I had come to find that this was a habit for him, somewhat of a tick, “I’ve spotted some strange anomalies in your cells.” I walked over to him peering curiously at the screen before him. There was a chart of some sorts lines of different colors in various scribbled lines. None of what I was seeing made any sense to me causing me to look away quickly.

“Okay…” I spoke slowly not sure what else to say. The lack of understanding what the strange charts meant didn't help.

“Well, I was wondering if perhaps you remembered if your uncle wrote any of his studies down?” 

“He typed a lot on his computer but I'm not entirely sure what it was he wrote.” I started “I can only assume it was his studies. The only other thing was the phone calls he'd make to the person paying him.”

“Paying? Your uncle worked with someone?” soldiers voice joined in curiosity obvious in his voice.

“No, he worked alone. Someone paid him for everything. Gave him the technology he needed.” I watched Winston ponder my words before he spoke again. The words that left his mouth causing a tinge of fear to creep up on me.

“Well then, the only option is to talk to your uncle himself.” I swallowed hard “I'm sure he'll be more willing to speak to you than us, we'll need your help.” I stared wide eyed. My uncle was no doubt an old wrinkle man by now. Nothing of the young stern man he once was. When I was young I feared him, his cold glaring eyes and constant angry scowl scared me. As I grew older he looked weaker and weaker, I didn't fear him anymore yet the idea of seeing him again brought immense fear. I left years ago angry and spiteful. I left the man behind with a broken arm and no apology.

“I don't think... I don't think I can do that.” I muttered fidgeting with my fingers.

“You have no choice.” Soldier's voice was more demanding now pushing me to shoot him a hateful glare.

“I’ll go. Only for the information, he may have on me. I also want to go to my apartment. I'd like to get some clothing and necessities I need.” I hissed before turning and leaving. I was angry and scared all at the same time. Angry that I was being pushed to do something I was so uncomfortable with. Scared to see the man who had changed and ruled so much of my life. It was a part of my past I wanted nothing to do with. I had left and never gave it a second thought. I never called or even wrote my uncle, I couldn't bring myself to do so. He was my only family but I felt betrayed and used by him. It was hard to left go, to know you were nothing more than a test subject to someone was hard to accept. It wasn't a hard childhood, he didn't beat me. I had a good meal every night and a warm bed to sleep in, yet it was only to keep me alive. I never got gifts for my birthday, never received a warming hug when I'd fall and hurt myself. It was the little things in the end that really hit me.

I found myself in the training room. My fists were clenched by heart racing as I began swinging blindly at the closest punching bag I could find. I didn't grab gloves before I did, the dry leather of the bag pushed hard against my knuckles as I swung. Each hit sending slight pain to shoot through my hands. 

“Woah woah there.” The voice suddenly called out from the room. I ignored it still swinging at the bag. McCree walked up beside me holding his hands out cautiously. He watched for a few seconds before grabbing my arms. He gripped them hard as I tried to pull away and continue my stress relief on the bag. He turned me to face him his eyes watching me sternly.

“Let me go, cowboy,” I muttered wanting nothing to do with people at the moment. He flashed me a smile throwing me off. 

“You're cute when you're angry.” His comment confused me causing my anger to lessen slightly. His smile never left his face. I couldn't help but feel my heart flutter. His smile seemingly perfect complimenting his perfect face. His teeth white against his tanned skin. Carefully he pulled his hands from my shoulders, his hands grabbing mine. His touch was gentle, almost surprising coming from him. 

“I'm fine.” I couldn't help but watch him carefully as he inspected my slightly bloodied knuckles. He looked focused.

“You're bleeding.”

“It's only my hands I'm sure I can deal with it.” I pulled my hands away instantly wishing I could still feel the warmth of his fingers on mine. 

“Whats got you so riled up?” I wasn't sure what it was about him that made me want to just spill everything to him. Perhaps it was just the fact that he was just so goddamn attractive. Maybe it was the accent. Something about him just made me want to open up to him about my entire life. I fought the urge and took a deep breath.

“I get the thrilling joy of going to see my uncle. Winston wants to talk to him about his studies” I exaggerated the word studies. I didn't consider anything my uncle did a study. I believe that a study, in the end, proves something shows something useful. What my uncle did were tests. He didn't know what would happen when he injected the strange fluids into my body. He had no idea what he was doing, all he saw was the money being thrown at him.

“Not a huge fan of him?” I shook my head avoiding his intense gaze. “Tell you what girl I’ll come along.” I looked up at him surprised.

“What? Why?”

“Well, Winston seems to be impressed by your uncle. It's always nice to have someone with you who shares your distaste.” I felt a small smile pull at the corner of my mouth. It was a simple gesture but that's all that mattered to me. 

“If this is some tactic to get into my pants it's not going to work,” I added. I said it more to remind myself of his personality. Since day one he'd been around trying to use his charm against me. I fought tooth and nail against it, as hard as it was when he'd smile.

“There's time and place for that sugar.” he smiled a genuine smile “plus I have plenty of time to keep trying” I rolled my eyes as his usual charm hit again.

The day raced by. McCree had helped me stop the bleeding of my knuckles, soon after leaving me to go training with soldier. Before I knew it the day had come to go see my uncle. I didn't sleep at all the night before. I couldn't, I was on edge the whole night unable to find the sweet serenity of sleep. Winston had agreed to allow McCree to join letting soldier stay behind. The older man didn't seem to care, in fact, he seemed almost relieved to be able to stay behind. I'm sure he was just pleased to be able to do more important things than deal with some old man who probably couldn't remember much about his younger years.

I was shocked to hear before we left that Winston was unable to go. I half expected him to want to reschedule for another day, but instead, he told McCree to keep an eye on me and demanded we bring back anything we could. We got into a small black SUV and McCree sped off.

The drive felt like hours. Each building that passed seeming more sinister as we moved closer and closer to our destination. To my dismay, the car finally pulled to a stop. My hands were shaking as I pulled open the door, a soft hand rested on my shoulder. I turned to face McCree my hand still on the open door.

“It’ll be alright darling.” He flashed me his signature charming smile. It gave me a slight feeling of ease for a moment. We both moved out of the vehicle walking up the familiar driveway I had played on so many times in my childhood. I took a deep breath before lifting a shaky fist to the door and knocking. Time felt like it slowed as I heard footsteps slowly move towards the door. I held my breath preparing to face the familiar face soon to greet me.

I was surprised to see the person answering the door was not my uncle. I watched in confusion as an elderly woman answered. 

“Yes?” Her voice was slightly shaky as she spoke.

“Uhm, yes hi.” I started trying to speak calmly “is Mr.Henderson here?” She looked at my eyes wide.

“Well I’ll be damned I haven't heard that name in years!” She smiled and held out her hand “how do you know him, deary?”

“He's my uncle ma’am.” her face softened slightly as she smiled sadly.

“Oh dear. Oh dear.” She spoke quietly “You don't know do you?”

“Know what?”

“Your uncle was killed a few years back, dear.” I felt my heart drop to my stomach. How had he died? Was it my fault? Did I kill my uncle? There was no sadness only shock. Shocked that my uncle was actually dead. I had wished death on him so much as a child, yet never actually wanted it to happen. I could hear McCree questioning the woman, their voices distant sounds as everything around me seemed to fade. A sudden wave of loneliness hit me. I had no family left. No one to run to, no one to run to when things went wrong. Though my uncle was never important to me, or even treated me as family. It was the thought that the last blood relative I had was gone. I would have never run to him or seek comfort in me, but realizing that the only person you could actually call family was now dead was a shock. It wasn't till I felt a warm touch on my shoulders that I realized tears streaming down my face. McCree was watching me concerned half in the house half out. I hadn't noticed the woman allowing us in. I hadn't heard a single thing they had talked about.

“You good?” I nodded and followed into the house. I was shocked to see it had barely changed since I lived here with my uncle. Almost everything was exactly as he left it. Upon further questioning, I found out the woman was a close friend of my uncles. It was surprising to find out as I had never seen my uncle with someone. Apparently, he left everything to her when he died. It almost made me laugh to hear. He left everything to a stranger rather than his own flesh and blood. The woman directed us to a far too familiar room. The door swung open into my uncle's office/lab. I was never sure what to call it as the metal table and stainless steel cabinet resembled a lab but the mahogany desk and large bookcase made it look like an office. A wave of nausea washed over me. Fear took over me. I knew it was silly but I could just see him coming through the door needle in hand ready to inject me with whatever it was he wanted to. I fell to my knees unable to stay on them much longer. Hot tears stinging my face.

“Mind giving us a moment?” McCree's voice broke the silence surrounding me. The lady said something agreeing to his request and left. I felt his hand gently touch my shoulder. I hadn't noticed till now that I was shaking “Take a deep breath darling.”

I inhaled deeply his words soothing me. He spoke a bit more trying his best to calm me down. Each word that slipped through his lips brought me a sense of ease. I finally tore my eyes from the floor and looked up at him. His beautiful face filled with worry. I forced a smile, my shaking slowly subsiding.

“You good?” I nodded as he helped me to my feet.

“I’m sorry. I just, god I don't know.” I muttered shaking my head. I glanced around the room memories filling my head.

“It's never easy going back to your past.” He walked over to the old laptop that sat on the desk in the middle of the room, “were damn lucky she didn't get rid of anything.” I nodded agreeing. I looked over at the cabinet and made my way towards it. I carefully opened it revealing what appeared to be a small fridge. I opened it, large vials of different fluids sitting there as though it was just yesterday they had been placed inside it. I would feel McCree standing behind me eyeing it. 

“What is it?” he questioned.

“I have no idea, whatever it was he injected into me.” Some were a dark red almost like blood. Others were strange unnatural looking colors. McCree's arm brushed around me as he grabbed a few and shoved them in his pockets. I gave him a startled look.

“It’ll help Winston better understand what was done.” He turned as he spoke looking at the laptop, “now let's hope this had no password.” I could hear that damn charming smile in his voice. He stretched out his hands and pressed the power button. Much to our dismay, a password screen popped up. McCree sighed.

“I don't suppose you know the password do you?” I shook my head. He lifted his hat slightly and scratched his head placing it neatly once more above his head. I watched him as he searched through the desk drawers. After a few minutes of doing so, he finally let out a sigh and shut the laptop down taking it up in his arms.

“You're not going to do the movie thing and pray you get it right?” I half joked. He shook his head.

“This could hold everything you need to learn what exactly he did,” I smiled. We both left the room, the lady offered us to stay for lunch but I quickly denied. I had no interest in sitting in that house more than I had to. We waved her off and thanked her for being so helpful. The drive to my apartment was much better than the drive to my uncles. Finding out my uncle was dead had caused a great deal of unknown feelings for me. I could feel McCree shooting me glances here and there as he drove.

I was stunned to see my apartment was torn apart. Drawers were open, things scattered across the floor. I entered my room to see the same scene before me. Everything was thrown across the floor.

“What the…” I stopped feeling very violated to think that someone had been in my apartment going through my stuff. 

“Get what you need let's try to make this quick,” McCree spoke eyeing the room carefully. I grabbed the biggest bag I could find and began stuffing it full of clothing. McCree roamed around my room curiously glancing at things here and there. I noticed he had picked up a small picture frame. He glanced at it curiously.

“Who's this?” he questioned curiously. I looked over at the picture. I stood side by side with a tall handsome man. He had gorgeous black hair his eyes a deep hazel and his smile unwavering. 

“An ex” I muttered turning my attention back to packing.

“Didn't go well?”

“He was quite the womanizer, fancied a few of my friends.” I zipped up the bag “Well more fancied all of them. Got to know them all personally.” I felt a slight pain in my chest. Remembering the failed attempt of a relationship. I had given him my all, with my heart on my sleeve. My heart that he so willingly used and abused and tossed aside. The ache was unbearable. I sat in my apartment for days wallowing in my own self-pity.

“I’m sorry.” the cowboy finally spoke. His voice was gentle as he placed the picture down on the nightstand, “no woman deserves that treatment.” I laughed at his words.

“Says the womanizer.” As the words left my mouth it came to me that I had actually never seen him with another woman. His charm and the way he held himself just made me assume that he was the type of guy who lived night to night with different women.

“I've done some things I ain't proud of.” he started “but I would never commit to a relationship and be unfaithful.” His deep brown eyes fell on mine, my heart fluttered.McCree took a few steps towards me closing the space between us. His face was inches from mine, I could feel his hot breath on my face. I felt myself getting more and more nervous at the closeness. My eyes fell to his lips. I bit my bottom lip, all I could think of was what it would feel like kissing him. The thought of his hands caressing my body sent tingles through my body. I hated the fact that I wanted him. It was a stupid thought, he was a charmer and he knew the effect he had on women. It bothered me so much that I was falling for his charm. His perfect crooked grin never failed to make my heart flutter.

“Let me get that for you.” His voice was low, snapping me out of my thoughts. He grabbed my bag and threw it over his shoulder. His shoulder brushed mine as he moved away. I let out a breath, one I didn't even realize I was holding. I stood there for a moment trying to regain my composure. As much as I hated it, there was a part of me that desperately wanted McCree. I finally walked out into the living room. The cowboy was already standing at the door waiting for me. I gave him a slight smile and followed him out, being sure to grab a few cat toys before leaving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope y'all are enjoying this so far, promise there will be a bit of action in the near future. Dont be afraid to let me know what you think. I love hearing from the people reading my stuff. thank you!


	5. won over

I moved around soldier routinely. It had become a part of his training to fight me in the ring, every time I won without fail. I was able to watch his movements and map out what he planned on doing next. I hadn't fought a day in my life but it seemed far easier than I ever expected. I moved around him quickly his speed matching mine. I had learned in our time together he was part of a program in the military called the soldier enhancement program, the tests they did were different from my uncles but still gave the soldier unmatchable strength and speed. Learning this I no longer played it easy on the old man. We danced around each other carefully watching the other, his visors light staring me down ruthlessly. I needed to get behind him but he didn't leave an opportunity for me to do so. A strange sensation washed over me before I knew it I was standing behind the man. I stood there wide-eyed, a gasp escaping my lips. Soldier spun around his hands dropping to his side.

“What in gods name was that?” The voice pulled me out of my shocked state. I turned to see Tracer standing by the door. She would often sit in and watch my training with soldier. I stared at her wide-eyed as I shrugged my shoulders.

“I… I don't know” I muttered quietly. Without saying a word soldier grabbed my arm and dragged me through the halls into Winston's lab. Winston looked up and flashed us a smile as we entered, a smile which quickly faded. 

“Athena, pull up the cameras in training room B.” Soldier spoke up without giving Winston an explanation, “I need to see the footage from the last ten minutes please.” A computer screen flashed as the AI pulled up what was asked. 

“76 what's the-” he held up his hand to Winston and pointed at the screen. I watched in awe as the scene unfolded before me. As soon as I stopped moving I shut my eyes briefly. My body became smoky as it vanished only to reform behind soldier.

“My goodness, this is amazing!” Winston was in awe as he paced the room back and forth. He was amazed by the video that soldier had shown him. He replayed at least a dozen times before he finally looked up at me “Have you always been able to do this?” I shook my head, I was still shocked and afraid by what I had seen. Soldier was silent through it all, his gaze never falling from me.

“I need you to give me a moment with Winston.” he finally spoke up.

“I think I can handle hearing what you have to say especially if it has something to do with me,” I spoke defiantly.

“I'm not asking soldier. I'm demanding.” The tone of his voice was enough to shut me up. I shakily found my way out into the hall. 

I was lost and confused as I moved through the hallways, finding myself outside. I found a quiet area to sit under a large tree. I sat there for what felt like hours.

“There ya are darling. Been looking all over for you.” I looked up in my daze to see McCree leaning against the tree. He flicked his cigar to the side and sat down with me. I turned my attention back to the open space before me. It was a beautiful sight, the ocean crashed against the waves, the smell of the salt wafting up my nose. I sat silently not knowing really what to say. 

“Need something cowboy?” My voice sounded distant, almost not like my own. 

“Just the company of a beautiful girl.” He flashed me a smirk. I looked up at him and forced a smile, “Wanna talks about it?” 

“What's to talk about?” I said stupidly. 

“Can't be easy. Not knowing what's going on with your own body.” I shrugged not really wanting to go in depth about the fear that followed whatever it was I managed to do earlier. McCree slowly moved closer to me, it was small movements at first barely noticeable.

“If you wanna get closer just do it already.” I hissed annoyed by the constant shifting. This pulled a huge smile from the man as he sat closer to me his shoulder brushing mine. We sat in silence, I rather enjoyed the company even if there was no talking. McCree kicked his feet out in front of him and leaned back. He had taken off his hat and placed it beside him. I took in his features. As many times as I saw the man, his stunning good looks never failed to stun me. He was almost too attractive to be real, like a man from a romance novel yanked straight from the pages. 

“Enjoying the view?” his eyes fell on me, I could feel my cheeks burn red. 

“Sorry.” I glanced back out to the water before me. The sun was setting, causing the water to be dyed with the beautiful colors of the sky, “beautiful out here, much different than the city.”

“Certainly is.” He muttered, I could feel his eyes on me. He shifted his weight wrapping an arm around my shoulder and pulled me into him. “You know you're kinda like a superhero now.” I giggled.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, what you do is kinda like teleportation. So your super fast and super strong. You're a superhero. Nothing wrong with that.” I looked up at him to see him smiling down at me, “Can I be your damsel in distress?” I let out a loud laugh at his words.

“Only if you wear a dress to match.” I chuckled imagining the man in a dress. He thought it over before shaking his head.

“I'll leave that to you. I think you'd look prettier than me in one.”

“You're right you're much too muscular to look right in one.” I pushed myself from his hold and turned to face him completely legs crossed. HIs eyes were soft and gentle, his smile lacked the usual charm, instead seeming much more genuine “Thank you, cowboy.”

“For?”

“Getting my mind off things.” He shrugged and placed his hat back on his head, he shifted to get up but I grabbed his flesh hand, forcing him to pause, “Stay with me for a bit? I mean if you don't have anything better to do.” He looked surprised by my request but I didn't want to be alone, not yet.

“I couldn't think of anything better to do with my time.” He placed his hat back on the ground and settled in. I hesitated before I laid back on the ground laying my head on his lap. I looked up at him expecting him to ask me to move but he didn't. A small smile tugged at my lips as I sat there staring up at the man as he watched the water. I felt my eyes get heavy as I slowly faded off to sleep.

***

“Who are you?” The girl looked up at the man before her. It has been almost two months now since she left her uncle behind. This man had been following her. At first, she thought she was crazy only seeing him in the shadows. As time past he stopped trying to hide, he made himself obvious.

“I have an opportunity for you little girl.” she eyed the tall dark skinned man before her. He was very well built muscles prominent under his black shirt. She recognized him as the same man from her uncles.

“I don't want whatever it is you have. You’re the reason I'm like this.” She hissed not bothering to hide her anger and disgust. He let out a laugh that caused her to shiver.

“I have given you a gift. You'll come to appreciate it, little girl.” He took a step towards her. She noticed his eyes trail along her body quickly before resting back on her face, “I can help you.” he was uncomfortably close to her now, her back pressed to the wall of the alley he had ambushed her in. His eyes bore into her, making her uncomfortable.

“I said I don't need your help.” She moved around him quickly, looking to lay a punch on him. Much to her surprise, he was just as quick. He followed her every move. Blocking punches after punch. She wasn't trained to fight so it really didn't surprise her that he was able to stop her so easily. What shocked her was that any normal person would wince from how hard she was hitting him, but he didn't even seem phased by her strength or her speed for that matter. He caught her off guard with a kick to her leg causing her to fall into him. He caught her with ease holding her up.

“Whether you like it or not one day you'll end up working with me.” He hissed in her ear. His voice almost a growl “don't fight the inevitable little girl.” She looked up at him his hands still gripping her tightly. His face was inches from hers, she could feel his hot breath on her face.

“Who are you?” was all she could manage to say. He flashed her a smile, no doubt it the situation was very different she would have gotten giddy from it. 

“Who I don't matter. You are part of a bigger picture here. “ She lifted her knee up hitting the man in the groin. He stumbled back a series of curses leaving his mouth. She took the chance to run. She ran as fast and far as she could before her lungs screamed for her to stop. 

***

I woke up to the feeling of someone carrying me. My face was buried in the person's chest. I placed a hand gently on the person's chest, as my eyes cleared from the blurriness of sleep I saw it was McCree.

“You're awake.” He smiled down at me his eyes lingering on my hand.

“I'm sorry, I didn't realize I was so tired.” He smiled, “Uhm, I can walk.” 

“Oh, of course, i'm sorry.” he quickly placed me back on my feet a hand on my shoulder making sure I was steady. We stood there momentarily just watching the other. He leaned in slightly. I watched confused yet a tinge of excitement hit me. Was he going to kiss me? Part of me desperately wished he would. I wanted to feel his lips on mine, feel his arms holding me. As much as I hated to admit that this charming womanizer won me over, somewhere along the lines he did.

“McCree we need you in briefing it's urgent.” Soldiers voice caused him to jump up and pull away his face turning red. I smiled and cleared my throat. I turned to walk away but was stopped “what do you think you're doing?” I turned to see the white haired man was now directing his words at me. 

“I'm going back to my room?”

“No your not. You're coming with me.” I stared at him in confusion. He wasn't being serious was he?

“Your joking right?”

“Do I look like I'm laughing?” I didn't bother with a retort as I followed the two down the call carefully. 

The room was full. A large clear table sat in the middle. I noticed a few faces that I had met before, others were new people I had never seen before. A large woman sat on the other side of the room. She was intimidating even from this distance. She had bright pink hair and her arms were bulging with muscle. She noticed my stare and flashed me a smile. Everyone was talking amongst themselves. I searched for McCree who was just seconds ago beside me. I spotted him standing beside a beautiful dark skinned woman. She had a unique tattoo below her right eye. Her body was well toned, her hair had a beautiful shine to it. A strange feeling hit me as I watched the two laugh with each other, was I jealous? Why was I jealous? It's not like I had laid claim on the cowboy. I clenched my jaw and turned my attention to the person who had settled uncomfortably close to me.

“Hello.” The man's voice was proper and slightly accented. I looked at him. He was handsome, his skin dark. He had his black hair pulled back into a ponytail. A beautiful dragon tattoo adorned his arm. 

“Hey.” I flashed him a sideways smile.

“My name is Hanzo.” He held out a hand, I took it his grip was firm.

“Nice to meet you Hanzo, Persephone.” I introduced myself even though I was almost positive everyone knew of the strange girl who had been taken in. He began making small talk. I listened to him, much to my surprise he was funny. He seemed very proper and very high on himself, such a sense of humor was the last thing I expected from him

“Alright everyone.” Quickly everyone stopped talking the room fell into silence, “We have talon agents working in a base outside of hanamura.” I couldn't help but notice the man beside me tense slightly. Though just as soon as I saw it it was gone. Soldier tapped the clear table before him, I gasped as I saw it light up. A large 3D map popped up. He maneuvered around the map until he brought up the map for the small town he was talking about. He began talking about the mission. Explaining the situation and what needed to be done. I was surprised to hear that talon was working on creating powerful omnics. 

“They didn't learn with the Omni crisis?” A small woman spoke up. She was wearing a very thick winter coat, I wasn't sure how she was wearing such a thing when it was so damn hot in here. There was a bit of muttering amongst everyone before it died down again. Soldier continued with his explanations. When he finished everyone slowly split up. I noticed McCree making his way to me but stopped.

“Stick with me this mission and I promise I'll keep you safe.” I turned to see Hanzo still standing beside me, “First mission is always the scariest.” He flashed me a perfect smile. I smiled at him and thanked him for being so willing to babysit me on a mission. I had almost forgotten about McCree as I began questioning Hanzo about the tattoo on his arm. It amazed me the amount of detail on it.

“Perhaps you'll get lucky enough to see how beautiful it can really get.” he flashed me a wink, it seemed out of place from such a proper man. 

“What do you mean?”

“It's more than just a tattoo. You'd have to see it believe it.” Soldier walked by and tossed me a bundle of fabric. I fumbled to grab it, grateful that Hanzo had caught it before it hit the ground.

“Put it on.” was all soldier said before he left. I looked down at my clothing.

“Whats wrong with what im wearing?” I questioned. I was wearing a pair of sweatpants and a slightly baggy shirt. Hanzo laughed at the confusion and hurt in my voice.

“Nothings wrong with it. You are new, though. It's best to put you in something we can identify you in than risk someone shooting you.” My eyes widened. Hanzo showed me a nearby bathroom where I quickly changed. It was a pair of tight black pants and a tight long sleeve shirt, it was white. There was a small white and orange symbol on the hip of the pants. When throwing the shirt on I noticed the same thing outlined in black. I exited the bathroom, half expecting Hanzo but instead was greeted by McCree.

“Se the archer has taken a liking to you.” there was a strange look on his face as he spoke.

“Archer?”

“Hanzo, he's an archer.”

“Oh! He's a very kind person.” I smiled, “Even willing to babysit the newbie.” I joked.

“I wouldn't call it babysitting. More protecting.” Hanzo's voice came in. I looked over to him and smiled. He glanced at the outfit “Not many make the recruit uniform look good.” I chuckled and thanked him.

“Alright bow boy. Don't you have arrows to clean or something?” McCree sounded annoyed. 

“Arrows to clean? No, but I do have to retrieve my quiver if you'll excuse me. I'll see you on the ship.” He gave a slight bow before walking off.

“I don't know if I'm ready for this. I haven't been here long and already going on a mission with you guys? Seems too soon.” I said after watching the man walk off.

“You'll do fine. Sooner the better, the first missions always the hardest to get done.” The strange tone in McCree's voice never wavered. I shut my mouth thinking I had somehow managed to annoy the man. We walked silently side by side.

As we entered the ship soldier handed me a small handgun, tracer close behind with a black leather belt attached to it a holster. 

“Better you have this love than not. I hope you won't need to use it.” She smiled at me and vanished in a flash of blue light. I found a seat to sit in and waited patiently for the ship to take off. Hanzo had come to sit beside me. We began to talk. As I was listening to him talked I looked around. I noticed the same woman talking to McCree, but his eyes were trained in my direction. He was watching me carefully. I smiled at him and turned my attention back to Hanzo. I could feel his gaze on me the whole time, even as the ship began to move, McCree's eyes never left me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you are all enjoying this so far. Please dont be afraid to tell me what you think I welcome all feedback it pushes me to keep going with the story. thank you for reading!!


	6. Close call

I cowered in a corner not sure how I was going to find the rest of the team. A large explosion had caused everyone to split up, I panicked and ran, not paying attention to where I was going. Shots were ringing out all around me, my heart racing. I had never been so scared in my life. I carefully peaked around the corner looking for any sign of a fellow teammate. I spotted a figure shooting down from a small ledge. I narrowed my eyes trying to figure out if it was a friendly or an enemy. I watched arrows shoot out from the person's position. Letting out a relieved sigh I recognized Hanzo simply by his unique outfit alone as he stood up and moved to a different vantage point

“This is a blast,” I muttered to myself as I moved quickly towards another wall to hide behind. I had to find my way to the man. Being alone and not used to this kind of situation I would feel much safer being close to someone I knew. Just as I got to my new cover an arrow hit the wall beside me. I let out a scream, hot tears threatened to fall from my eyes. 

“So much for recognizing me by my outfit.” I hissed in a shaky voice. Frozen in fear I felt unable to move. Heavy footsteps moved towards me. I panicked praying to god it was a teammate and not someone working for the other side. A man moved around the corner almost gliding. 

He was dressed in all black, a white mask kept his face hidden. He stopped as he spotted me pressed against the wall. My body refused to move, I was frozen staring at the man wide eyed. He let out a laugh as he moved towards me.

“Well, well, well.” His voice was chilling. Almost a deep growl, something about it seemed familiar to me, “this must be Christmas.” He stopped in front of me, I could feel his eyes watching me from behind his mask. My throat felt dry, goosebumps covered my body.

“Cat got your tongue?” He spoke again, I was unable to find my voice. He tilted his head slightly, another laugh leaving him “well I’ll be damned.” He kneeled down beside me. I flinched away as he grabbed my chin. I tried to pull back but his grip was too tight. I looked at the masked man heart beating in my ears.

“P-please don't h-hurt me.” finally, I managed to spit out. 

“Oh I don't want to hurt you little girl” his words terrified me more than the fact that I was alone with the enemy. I had no idea who he was, or what role he played with talon, but every fiber in my body screamed at me to get out and get out fast. He turned my head to the left than to the right as if inspecting me. 

“Who a-are you?” I tried to stop myself from stuttering but I couldn't hold back the fear I felt. I hated the fact that I wasn't able to hide it. Couldn't help but feel if it was any other agent in this position, they would be much calmer and collective. Yet again if it was any other agent they probably never would have been in the same position.

“You don't remember me?” I shook my head “Well I suppose not, it has been a long time since I last saw you.” I tried to search my mind for who this could possibly be. His voice was very unique surely I'd be able to remember that alone. The man yanked me upwards, a firm grip on my arm as he did. I could feel his eyes looking me over causing me to shiver once more. 

“Please let me go. I won't tell anyone I saw you I promise.” I felt ridiculous as the words left my mouth, as though the man would really let me go simply because I made a stupid child's promise. He shook his head as he yanked me towards him.

“Oh dear, I have no intention of letting you go.” His words made my heart drop. I tried pulling my arm from his grip but he only gripped me harder, a sharp pain shot through my arm. I looked down to see small claws on his gloves, the source of the pain. I let out a scream, doubtful anyone would hear me. He cupped a gloved hand over my mouth quickly cutting my scream short. 

“Don't make this any harder than you need to little girl.” He whispered in my ear. It wasn't until I was pressed against his body that I realized the lack of heat from him. There was the sound of something cutting through the air not too far off from us. The man cussed under his breath, He pushed me forward urging me to move quickly. I spun around to face him, not trusting him to keep my back to him. I stumbled over my own feet as I tried to keep distance between the two of us while walking backward. I watched as something hit the masked figure in the shoulder. He let out a hiss of pain. I glanced behind him to see Hanzo standing tall a short distance off. I took the chance to run past him towards the archer. Safety just a few feet away, I just had to make it. The masked man reached for me I panicked as I felt his hand grazed my wrist. I shut my eyes praying he didn't get a firm grip. I opened them once more and found myself standing beside Hanzo, his face filled with shock by what he witnessed. 

Though I wasn't able to figure out what was going on with myself or the strange new talent, I was happy to find myself beside the archer. He shook his head and grabbed my arm.

“Time to go, yes?” I nodded and followed behind him. He moved quickly ducking for cover every now and then. He stopped, his grip on my arm loosening as he jumped up on a ledge, lifting himself with ease. I looked up at him as he reached down holding out a hand to me. I gripped it and was shocked to see him lift me with ease. 

“Stay low.” his voice was but a whisper. He kneeled down beside me his bow ready. I watched in awe at how he looked. Bow readied arrow pointing to its next target. He was almost beautiful. I glanced down below seeing a large group of talon agents blocking our way back to the meetup point. I spotted a few people nearby. Soldier was standing his back pressed to a wall, peeking out every now and then shooting and injuring a few agents. 

“Now, I will show you something amazing.” I couldn't ignore the pride that filled his voice. He readied an arrow and pulled back the string “Ryuuga wagateki wo kurau!” 

My jaw dropped. I watched in awe as two brilliant blue dragon's move forward. I blinked a few times sure that what I was seeing before I was not real, it couldn't be. A loud roar filled the room. I noticed soldier dart out from behind his cover shooting those who the dragons managed to avoid. My eyes landed once again on the dragons watching them as they faded away.

“Oh my god.” I whispered I looked over at the archer a proud smile on his face “That was… deathly beautiful.” I whispered still trying to figure out what in gods name I saw.

“It consumes those who wish me harm, does not affect the team,” he explained. He carefully jumped down onto the ground below us. I looked down not sure if I could make the jump. I glanced around me and noticed a stairwell to the right of Hanzo. Surely the entrance would be somewhere nearby. He noted my uneasiness to jump.

“Would you like me to assist you?” He readied himself to jump back up. I shook my head.

“No no, I should be fine. I’ll be careful.” I pulled out the small pistol on my side for the first time and flashed him a smile. He looked at me unsure before darting forward, helping soldier clear the area. 

I moved carefully down the hallway holding the gun at the ready. I heard distant footsteps around the corner. I took a deep breath trying to keep calm. I crept up to the cornerback pressed hard against the wall. I sat there for a moment listening to the steps slowly slow just a few feet from the corner. Taking one last breath I spun around the corner gun drawn. 

“Woah woah holds up there” McCree held his hands up defensively.

“McCree. Oh my, god I'm sorry.” I dropped the gun quickly. He flashed me a smiled.

“It's alright darling. Glad to see you so prepared.” Movement behind him caught my attention, I raised my gun again. McCree looked at me shocked to see me once again raising my gun to him. No doubt it was confusing to him. I hesitated before my next moves. Time seemed to slow as I focused on the area of the movement. I didn't have to see fully to know it was a talon agent. I found myself standing behind the crouching man. I pressed the gun to the back of his head.

“Drop the gun.” I hissed. McCree spun around. With lightning reflexes, he drew his gun. The talon agent was flustered as his gun clattered to the floor. I kicked the gun to the side just out of his reach. I laid a pressed my foot against his back pushing his forward. Holstering my gun to my side again, I quickly grabbed his arms and held them behind him. McCree made his way towards me a huge smile on his face.

“Well done darling!” I couldn’t stop the wide smile from crossing my face his praise sending warm tingles to surge through me. He took cuff from his belt and quickly wrapped them around his wrists “Soldier will certainly want to question him. Looks like these fuckers are planning something.” 

Footsteps approached us quickly. McCree held his gun out pointing it in the same direction the steps were coming from. Hanzo made his way around the corner. He didn't even flinch when he spotted McCree pointing his gun in his direction.

“Put it away gunslinger.” Hanzo spoke his eyes trained on me “you okay?” It warmed me to realized he must have noticed it was taking me far too long to make my way down. It felt nice to have someone looking out for me like that. 

“She's alright archer.” McCree sounded defensive “Girls more than able to cover her own ass. Took out this guy without help.” Hanzo glanced down at the man beneath me, an impressed smile crossed his face.

“Well I underestimated you.” he gave me a light bow. McCree let out a sigh and lifted the agent by his cuffs dragging him to his feet. 

The agent never spoke. I half expected him to plead with us to let him go, or to have mercy on him. Yet he never said a word. He remained silent. It wasn't until we were halfway to the ship that he finally spoke.

“He's going to get you.” He looked over at me his voice was monotone. McCree yanked him back aggressively.

“You better keep your goddamn mouth shut” the threatening tone sounded strange coming from a man that I always saw smiling. The agent's eyes never left me as we moved. Hanzo glanced between the two of us and noticed my discomfort. he pushed me forward a bit and walked in front of the man breaking his ability to see me. I smiled and gave him a slight nod.

“Brought you a little gift,” McCree spoke up as we entered the ship.Soldier spun around and eyed the prisoner.

“Throw him in the holding cell. Tracer keeps an eye on him back there. I don't want to risk anything happening.” Tracer nodded and was beside the agent within seconds. She pulled him towards the back of the ship. Everyone had settled down, a few were treating small wounds they had acquired whilst fighting. I sat down and let out a long relieved sigh.

“Didn't need me after all.” Hanzo came to my side flashing me a smile. I smiled back. 

“Well, you kinda did save my ass from that masked guy.” I saw soldier tense, McCree was at my side in seconds looking me over. I gave him an odd look.

“Did he hurt you?” McCree questioned as his eyes scanned my body. I shook my head.

“He didn't hurt me.”

“Soldier you may be curious to know reaper was trying to take her somewhere when I spotted the two,” Hanzo spoke up. Soldier walked up to us.

“What did he say to you?”

“Uh, I don't know. He said he had no intention of letting me go.” Before I could continue soldier cut my off.

“He must know about you.” He looked at the two men in front of me “I think you two can handle keeping an eye on the kid.” 

“I'm sorry sir but I don't believe I need to be babysat.”

“Then just think of it as bodyguards.” I could hear in his tone he wasn't willing to argue about it further. McCree stood up and walked towards the older man. The two began to talk quietly. I was unable to hear anything being said. Hanzo began talking to me drawing my attention away from the other two men. 

At the base soldier shouted out a few demands as the rest of us made our way into the base. Hanzo and I had walked in together, the two of us walking into the kitchen for food. 

“Tell me something about yourself?” Hanzo asked as we ate together.

“Not much to tell really.” I smiled swallowing a mouthful of food “I'm your average girl.” He raised an eyebrow at me.

“An average girl who teleports. Yeah, i've met many of your kinds.” I chuckled at his sarcasm.

“That's… that's a new thing.” 

“What do you like to do on your spare time?” I was thankful that he didn't push the issue any further. We began to talk about little things here and there. He was a great conversationalist, I rather enjoyed his company. My cheeks stung from smiling and laughing so much with him. I heard someone approaching but didn't bother to look. 

“Perhaps I can show you how to sometime.” Hanzo finished. I had told him I never shot a bow in my life, I wouldn't even know where to start. 

“That would be nice. I'd love to learn. Though I doubt I'd ever be great as you.” 

“You don't want him as a teacher.” McCree's voice chimed in “He is a strict teacher.”

“I am not strict. I am disciplined.” Hanzo spoke. The air between the two of them seemed tense. I glanced between the two as they watched each other intensely.

“Well, I should be going.” I finally spoke up trying to break the uncomfortable silence. Hanzo pulled his gaze from McCree.

“Let me walk you to your room.” He began to stand up but was stopped by McCree placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Don't worry about it dragon boy. I'm heading that way anyways.” I stood up and waved Hanzo goodbye. 

The walk back to my room was silent as we moved through the hallways. I caught a few glances at the cowboy. He looked annoyed, I couldn't help but wonder if perhaps I was annoying him for some reason. His looks never failed to send a warm tingle through my body. His jaw was perfectly sculpted the defining line easier to see from the side. My eyes trailed down to his lips. I wondered how they felt. Were they soft or rough? My eyes slowly trailed lower. The muscles in his arms were prominent, My mind began to wander. Unclean thoughts filling my mind about the cowboy. 

“You alright?” His voice caused me to blush, as though somehow he knew my thoughts. 

“Yeah I'm good.” I forced a smile. We stopped outside my room “Thanks for walking me back, you really didn't have to.”

“I'd rather know I took you back then the archer.” I tilted my head at him “He can get handsy.” He added quickly. I chuckled not believing that. Hanzo seemed far too proper to make a move on a girl without her doing so first. I thought he was just trying to hide his real reason for disliking the man. I brushed it off.

“Well, goodnight.” I opened the door. I heard him take a deep breath. Expecting him to say something I turned to look at him. He had a strange look on his face as he stood there.

“Goodnight darling.” He finally spoke before turning to leave. I let out a sigh and shut the door. Falling back on my bed I was quickly consumed by sleep.

***

A dark figure loomed over the girl. She was sleeping peacefully in her bed. He watched her curiously, her small form seemed so small under the blankets. He traced a finger along her body slowly dragging the blanket down. He wasn't a scientist but he knew he wanted to further the tests he has already started. She stirred slightly as the cold air brushed her body. He waited briefly before moving again, assuring that she would not wake up. He had been following her for years now. She was his, after all, he made her what she was. It angered him to no end that she rejected his offer. 

He pulled the small needle out from his jacket and popped off the top. Carefully and slowly he lowered it to the girl's skin. She winced slightly as it broke the skin and the fluid rushed through her veins. He knew this would have an effect on her. Just how much of an effect he wasn't sure yet. He lifted the blankets once more over her body, placing the now empty needle back in his pocket.

“You will work with me. One day.” He whispered. She shifted her eyes opening slightly.

“Am I dreaming?” Her voice was sleepy as she spoke.

“Yes. Now close your eyes.” He replied. She did, slowly fading back to sleep. He stood there for a bit longer watching her, nothing more than a shadow in the darkness of her room.

***

I shot awake the strange dream had made my heart race. It all seems so real. I was an outsider looking in on the person's life. I couldn't see just who the girl was but I felt like I knew her somehow. The man who was distantly familiar. I ran my hands through my hair and fell back into bed.

“Damn dreams,” I muttered to the darkness. It was a common occurrence for my dreams to wake me up with a startle. It never failed to frustrate me, usually resulting in no sleep for the rest of the night. I glanced at the clock, it read 5:00 in the morning. I sighed and kicked the sheets off. I headed into the shower, there was no way I was going to get back to sleep for an hour. I showered and headed towards the training room looking to warm up before soldier came in for the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry if this was lacking a bit of action. More action to come soon i promise. I hope you are enjoying this so far. Thank you so much for the comments and kudos. I appreciate all of it more than you know. Thank you for reading!


	7. The Tree

“you're up early” Soldier called out slightly surprised. I shrugged my shoulders as I continued to run on the treadmill.

“Couldn't sleep.” I slowed down the machine until it came to a halt. Getting off I stood before the man awaiting his orders.

“What kept you up?” Soldier questioned. I was shocked to hear him asking questioned, so used to the man just nodding and accepting what was said.

“Nothing important.” I muttered, “What are we doing today?” Wasn't overly interested in telling him I couldn't sleep because of the dreams I was having. I couldn't really call them nightmares as they didn't so much scare me as they did confuse me. It was how real they felt that made me uneasy. Sometimes they were old memories other times I couldn't figure out just what was going on in my own mind.

“Nightmares?’ He pushed further. I just nodded. With that, he was finally happy with the information he received. 

Soldier had brought Tracer in for training as she was the only one with any abilities close to my new found ones. She couldn't really help me much though as it was still a very different ability. I got the basics of how it works. Before I would close my eyes and focus on the area I wanted to go but I quickly learned that all I had to do was look where I wanted to be. It was simple, never failed to amaze me that it always worked. Training was getting easier day by day. Soldier put me to new tests. After my close encounter with whom I came to know was a man named reaper. I was filled in by a few team members about the man. He came to the attention of Overwatch after he attacked Winston, the very attack that brought him to initiate the recall. Reaper had attacked a few members of the team and thus putting him in the spotlight. 

Winston had taken me in for a few more tests, trying to figure out just what it was that allowed me to do such things. He noted that the only thing he could think of was the strange anomaly of my blood cells, he tried to describe it to me but I just didn't understand a thing he was saying. Winston wasn't one for using simple words. 

In all the stress it had slowly become ritual for me to join two omnics in meditation. Zenyatta, the omnic I met in my first days here and Genji. I would join them after my training with soldier, the calm silence and dull hum of the two men somewhat making the meditation easier. I came to learn that Genji had been saved from certain death by Mercy, his heart was still that of a human's and a few other things as well, making him not quite omnic and certainly not human. I often questioned how he handled that, not being able to fit in anywhere. He was a very kind man and I enjoyed the small conversation we had. The two were very humbled and stress free. 

I sat outside beneath a large tree overlooking the ocean. It had slowly become my favorite place to stay. For the little time I was there I felt normal. I forgot about Overwatch and the chaos my life has become. I leaned against the tree closing my eyes listening to the waves crash against the land.

“It's a nice place to sit isn't it?” 

“My favorite,” I smiled not opening my eyes. Hanzo was silent as he approached the place I was sitting. 

“I like to come out here myself sometimes. It's serene.” I looked over at him. He was dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a form fitting t-shirt. It was a strange sight to see him in, almost looks wrong “How are you liking being a part of the Overwatch team?” He questioned.

“I like it. Everyone's very kind. Definitely, makes my life more exciting.” he chuckled and nodded. 

“Yes, it makes for a very eventful life.” He glanced out over the water. My eyes followed his. I took in a deep breath the scent of the water pleasing.

“What's the deal between you and McCree?” I questioned curiously.

“The cowboy and I have never seen eye to eye.” He shrugged “He is reckless and just shoots everything he seems. Damn people and their guns.”

“The archer just hates that I'm better looking than him.” McCree walked up to us “are you bothering the pretty girl Hanzo?”

“Only keeping her company gunslinger.” the two watched each other carefully. 

“Soldier wants to see you,” McCree spoke in a monotone voice. Hanzo stood up and brushed off his pants.

“I will see you later hopefully.” He gave me a slight bow before walking off. McCree quickly took Hanzo's place beside me. He placed his hat beside him and leaned against the tree eyes shut.

“Haven't seen you around much lately.” his words sent a warm tingle up my spine. The thought that he perhaps wanted to see me and that's why he brought it up made me feel happy. I looked over at him taking in his appearance. A cigar dangled from his mouth as he puffed out smoke. I couldn't help but feel a small flutter of my heart as his eyes met mine.

“Soldier and Winston have been keeping me pretty busy. Doesn't leave me much time to roam around”

“I'll have to give them hell for keeping you so busy.” He flashed me his signature charming grin. I felt my cheeks turn red. As much as I hated his charm I loved it just as much. I hated the way he made my heart flutter with just a smile. I hated that his voice alone did things to my body I wouldn't dare tell a soul. 

“So darling, your boyfriend missing you yet?” I looked at him confused.

“Boyfriend?”

“Yeah you know a guy you're dating that's called your boyfriend.” He stopped and looked at me expectantly.

I laughed at him before answering.

“Don't you think I'd have gone to see him by now if I had one cowboy?” 

“Well, I dunno perhaps the big guy won't let ya.” I shook my head “you really telling me you're single?” I nodded. A huge smile crossed his face, but just as quickly as it came it went. He cleared his throat.

“We're you with overwatch before the recall?” I asked curiously before he could say anything else.

“I was yes, but I was part of something called Blackwatch.” 

“How'd you end up in all this?” I was very curious about the man's life. I craved the need to know him inside and out. I wanted to know what made him smile, what made him mad. Even the little details about him I wanted to know. 

“The same sting operation I lost my arm in. They saw me. Saw potential and recruited me. When things went down I didn't care to be associated with Blackwatch and what it's commander had planned so I left.” I thought about it briefly. No one was certain what caused the imminent fall of overwatch. It was bound to happen and people knew that. There had been whispers of a covert operation working inside of it. Perhaps it was a series of things that caused the fall. I pondered questioning him about it but figured if it was a bad part of his past I wouldn't want to bring up bad memories.

“Why'd you agree to join?”

“Yer just full of questions today darling.” I looked down at my hands sheepishly and muttered a sorry. He laughed and gently lifted my chin to look at him, the feeling of his fingers on my skin sent warmth through my body “it's alright.” He smiled before answering my question.

“Well at first I agreed because I saw no other choice. If I didn't I'd end up in jail or worse. I thought it was ridiculous that they believed a deadlock gang member would be able to make a difference” he took a deep breath and continues “as time passed I began to believe that I could make up for all the bad I had done in my past. I grew to like being the good guy.”

“Being the hero.,” I muttered.

“Haha. Well, I wouldn't call myself that darling.”

“I would.” He looked at me waiting for me to continue “you saved me from who knows whatever fate that woman planned for me.” I smiled. A look crossed his face that I couldn't quite pinpoint. 

“Well then I guess that's more than good enough reason.” He smirked. Biting his lip he shifted his weight slightly. He leaned in quickly his lips tenderly touching mine. Sat there stunned for a moment. Just as quickly as it happened his lips were gone. He stood up quickly nervously fidgeting with his hat that he had grabbed off the ground.

“I’m sorry I gotta go.” With that, he ran off. I had no chance to protest as I was still trying to figure out what just happened. I brought a hand to my lips the phantom feeling of his lips on mine lingered.I fought off the feeling to scream with excitement.

“Did that really just happen?” I questioned myself out loud. I felt like a small child on Christmas. My cheeks burned from the smile that spread across my face, “And you fucked it up.” I slapped myself mentally for not jumping on the opportunity to kiss the cowboy back. I don't doubt he thought I was not interested with the way I acted. This was the complete opposite. I hated the fact that I had grown feelings for him. He was smooth and undeniably sexy. He knew this, you could tell by the way he held himself, yet I couldn't turn off the feelings I had for him. 

“Or perhaps it was an accident,” I mumbled. The negative thought bothered me. Perhaps it was just a spur of the moment thing, something that didn't have much meaning behind it. I shook my head, “Way to confuse yourself.” 

I sat by the tree for a few more hours before deciding it was time I head back inside. Roaming the halls I noticed them very empty. Usually, I would see one or two people but the whole facility seemed deserted. I entered the kitchen the one place that usually has a few people, but it too was absent from life. 

I found my way to the briefing room. It was packed. I had seen them leave on a few missions since my last one and this room was never this busy. A few people looked towards me as I entered. Standing silently in the back I listening to everyone silently talk among themselves. I could hear a few confused questions as to why everyone was here but no one seemed to know why. Looking around I spotted McCree by the same woman he was with on our last mission. I learned the woman's name was pharah. It bothered me to see the two together laughing. Knowing McCree's charm he was no doubt flirting. The thought of his lips on mine once again didn't help the distaste I had towards the woman. I had no reason to dislike her other than my jealousy of her having the man's attention. 

“Everyone listen up.” The room went silent, soldier cleared his throat before continuing. According to inside sources, whatever they may be there was a large talon base not too far off from the base. Soldier had assembled the whole team fearing that a smaller team would not be safe going into such a large base. He went over the details of the mission. A few people seemed concerned and worried. Others looked very excited. I wasn't sure if I was even supposed to be sitting in on this until soldier called out my name.

“I'll need to talk to you.” was all he stated before continuing again with the mission details. Slowly one by one the room cleared out leaving only me and soldier behind. He walked over to me, I was nervous wondering if perhaps he was mad at me for being in the room when I wasn't supposed to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another uneventful chapter I know but the next chapter has a little bit of excitement I promise. Thank you for the kudos and thank you for reading. Please don't be afraid to let me know how you like the story so far, promise I won't bite! well maybe unless you're into that than maybe :p


	8. Behind enemy lines

My hands were shaky as I held the gun at the ready. Soldier had given me very different orders from the rest of the team. I tried to change his mind about it but he believed I was more than ready to go in alone. The building was huge, much like a warehouse I got turned around trying to follow the directions he gave me. 76 had informed me that I would be going into the base alone. I'd have to stay low as to not alert the talon agents that an Overwatch member was inside the building. If they did it would surely ruin the safety of the rest of the team. This alone was worrying. The whole team's safety could be ruined if I messed up. My orders were simple, sneak in, kill my target. It seemed simple but I noticed there were more talon agents in the building than I had, though. The target was the reaper, soldier believed with my abilities I had a better chance of sneaking in and getting to him without being spotted.

“He scares me, who knows what he wanted him for..” A talon agent just a few feet in front of me was talking to another. The two were clueless as I tried my hardest to walk quietly behind them. My heart was beating so loud I was sure that alone would catch their attention. They turned down a hallway to my relief. I had turned down the hall expecting it to be empty but those two were an unwelcome surprise. I only had the ride to the base to memorize the directions soldier had given me. I wondered just who the inside sources were to know the exact room the reaper would be in. 

After a few close calls, I finally found myself in front of my targeted room. The door not to my shock locked. I focused on entering the room my body quickly dissipating and I found myself in the room. I looked at it, it was rather beautiful. The decoration could best be described as gothic. There was a very large four canopy bed off in the corner, a dark mahogany desk sat in front of a very large bookshelf, that took up the whole wall behind it. I carefully searched the room for any sign of life. It was seemingly empty, or so I thought.

“You look lost little girl.” I froze, I glanced over at the bed that I had only glanced at briefly before. The reaper was sitting up in it leaning against a pillow, “Normally I wouldn't welcome company, but I'll make an excuse.” I noticed that his mask was not covering his face. He stood up from the bed moving quickly towards me. I lifted my gun to him finger on the trigger. He didn't flinch as he stood only a few inches from the tip of my gun. I stared wide eyed at the man, his face was scarred. His eyes dark, almost black. He flashed me a sinister smile sending chills down my spine.

“Where do I know you from,” I whispered shakily. He lifted his hand to the gun gently pushing it down and pulling it with force from my hand. I watched in terror as he threw it to the side. My hands dropped as he closed the space between us. He lifted a finger to my chin pulling my chin upwards, forcing me to look at him. 

“You tell me, little girl.”

“You…” His face has changed over the years. His skin was no longer that beautiful dark color. His eyes lacked life. Yet it was him, I could see the handsome man behind the scars and sickly colored skin. The same man that was with me the night I hurt my uncle, the night I was freed from his tests. The same man I couldn't help but think was handsome back then. I remember there were many nights I would lay in bed as a young girl thinking about him. He was stunning then. He wasn't ugly now, but I was wiser now seeing past the good looks and seeing the sinister man before me.

“Oh? You remember?” he smiled again, he was close enough that I could feel his breath on my face”All those years ago you thought you let it go. I followed you, I knew your every move little girl. I watched you work, make friends, I watched you grow up. I watched you with boyfriends. There wasn't a thing that you did that I didn't see.” I swallowed hard each word that left his mouth sent shivers through me. It was terrifying to think my whole life wasn't as private as I thought. I had seen him a few times after leaving my uncles but after the last time we encountered each other, I stopped seeing him. Deep down I always knew something was off. I would feel eyes on me as I walked home. Each time I went out with my ex I always felt eyes on me. I brushed it off as being paranoid. Who was I after all but a simple girl to everyone else? 

“It was always you..” I whispered. The constant discomfort I felt was not just in my head. It was him, he was watching me. 

“Of course. I do after all know that you're not your average everyday woman.” He brushed his thumb over my lower lip “you have grown up quite a lot since then little girl.”

“Why? Why do you watch me? What do you want?”

“I told you last time we met. You would end up with me in the end.” his hand dropped to his side. I watched him shamelessly look me up and down “your a bit later than I initially planned but you're here.”

“I'm not here to join you, I'm here to kill you.” A sudden wave of courage hit me “if I can't shoot you I'll kill you with my own two hands.” He laughed causing me to waver slightly. Shaking his head he turned his back to me.

“I made you what you are.” I ran at him jumping on his back, the sudden weight caused him to stumble forward. He latched a hand in my hair and yanked me forward. He pulled me off his back and threw me to the ground. I was winded as I landed flat on my back. I sat there in pain trying to catch my breath. He shook his head giving me a disapproving look. 

“What do you want with me.” I hissed short of breath still, “You sound so proud, what you did to me was not something worth being happy about.” I resented being different from everyone, to see someone so happy to take ownership of what I hated so much made me angry.

“I made you what you are to join me. A secret weapon in my war.” He held a hand out to me. I eyed him suspiciously “It's a hand, not a bomb. Grab it.” He said annoyed. I grabbed his hand gingerly. His hand enveloped mine as he yanked me to my feet. I stared in awe at how small his hand made mine look. I was shocked to not feel any heat coming from his hand. He pulled away and hid his hands behind his back. My eyes trailed his body from head to toe. He was well built. Muscles prominent beneath his clothing, the muscles in his thighs were very prominent as well. I couldn't help but admire his frame. He cleared his throat pulling my attention back to his face. He was smiling at me causing my face to burn red with the idea that I was caught staring. I knew he was the bad guy but I can't deny admiring something nice when I see it. A thought came to mind causing me to feel guilty. 

‘He's certainly not McCree.’ I thought to myself. Reaper was handsome sure, in a sinister kind of way, but he was nothing compared to McCree. Something about the cowboy just made him seem so goddamn perfect in my eyes. I tried desperately to find a flaw in him to stop the need I had for him but I couldn't. The man was flawless to me. His voice itself was enough to send a warmth through my body.

“It's a shame the golden boy got to you before I did. That's what I get for sending someone to get you for me.” the blue skinned woman came into mind. She worked for Reaper. He dragged a finger along my neck and stopped at my chest. I straightened my shoulders and glared at him.

“I won't work for you.” He laughed and shook his head.

“I know what's happening to you.” he spoke softly now “I can help you deal with it.” I swallowed hard. 

“How could you possibly know,” I mumbled. There was no way this man could possibly know what was happening to me. It wasn't every day that one could simply teleport. Without a word, he dissipated to smoke before my eyes. I watched wide eyed as he vanished. I felt a hand trailed along my neck. I jumped and spun around. Reaper stood behind me with a wide smile on his face.I hesitated for a moment, the idea was tempting. Who better to work with than someone who knew exactly what I was feeling. Someone who knew how to deal with what was happening to me, someone to teach me.

“I know because we’re the same you and me.” He walked back to me holding out his arms as if expecting me to hug him, “I am the reason you are what you are little girl. Stop fighting the inevitable. Join me, together we can do wonderful things.” I backed away from him, shaking my head.

“No. I won't work for you. Kill me if you want I don't care I will not work for you.” An angered look crossed his face. I couldn't turn my back on the same people who saved me more than once. It seemed stupid to think but I don't think I'd be able to go without seeing McCree again, or hear his voice and see that stupid charming smile of his.

“What do you have there hmm? A coward who ran away from his duties and an old man who's too afraid to admit the things he's done.” He shook his head “Don't forget the doctor who plays god.”

“I believe in what they fight for.’ I said matter of factly.

“They're not the sweet innocent people you think they are little girl.” the kindness in his voice quickly faded replaced by anger. He gripped my arms tightly, his lifeless eyes peering into mine. “You will work for me.” In an instant, his hands trailed along my body hungrily. I pushed him away, hands shaking now. His anger was replaced with a strange need. He moved towards me once again lips crashing roughly to mine. He had one hand tangled in my hair. I pushed against his chest trying to shove him away from me. His free hand stopped over my chest groping eagerly, his claws tearing at the shirt slightly allowing me to feel the cold metal against my skins.

Gunshots rang out in the building, I let out a shaky sigh of relief as reaper pulled away. He stood there for a moment his hand never leaving my hair. More shots rang out. He let out a series of curse words as he moved around the room quickly. Within seconds he was standing before me his face once again covered by his bone white mask. 

“Stay here.” he hissed before fading through the door. I stood there unmoving for a few moments before finally coming to my sense. I ran towards the door and flipped the lock, opening it carefully I peered up and down the halls. It was empty to my relief. I moved carefully down the halls looking for anything leading to the outside. Scanning my mind rapidly I tried to remember the directions I took to get here in the first place. I followed my way back the best I could. 

“Don't move.” A voice called behind me, it was threatening yet familiar. I turned carefully to come face to face with Hanzo. I didn't listen to him and threw myself at him tears running down my cheeks. He quickly put his bow away and wrapped his arms around me.

“I - I couldn't..” I mumbled into his chest “I fucked up he's… i…” I couldn't put a proper sentence together. Hanzo spoke something into the small earpiece in his ear. I felt ashamed for letting myself go like this but I couldn't help it. The meeting with reaper had unnerved me. I couldn't hear what he was saying into his ear piece. He pulled me into his arms. I couldn't thank him enough that he was so willing to stop in such a dangerous place and comfort me. I took a deep breath and pulled myself from him. His eyes were filled with concern.

“I’m sorry…” I muttered wiping the tears from my eyes, he held my face in his hands his thumb gently stroking away a stray tear.

“Never be sorry for feeling.” He smiled. I heard a light metallic sound. I quickly loved behind Hanzo he readied his bow. McCree turned the corner gun at the ready. He ran over to us quickly, his eyes scanning me. His eyes lingered on the small tears on my chest. 

“Where is he?” His voice was dark and threatening, “Where's the fucking coward?” 

“We have no time for playing cat and mouse gunslinger.” Hanzo warned, “We need to get out, they know we're here now, there's not enough of us to take out all them.”

“I told you to stay.” The voice caused my whole body to shake. Reaper stood behind McCree “well look at this filth.” He hissed his attention on McCree. The cowboy turned to face him.

“Well if it isn't the biggest coward I know.” McCree's accent was thicker as he spoke. The anger making it seem stronger “This what you do now? Attack women?”

“She's the one who attacked me first.” He chuckled and leaned his head a bit allowing me to be in his view behind McCree “come here little girl, I won't hurt anyone if you come willingly.” I stood there frozen, I could feel Hanzo holding a hand out in front of me as though his hand would simply protect me from everything. 

“She ain't going with you,” McCree spoke his gun at the ready. Reaper laughed and shook his head.

“Always were stupid when it came to women, letting the wrong head think for you.” reaper took a step towards McCree. I pushed aside Hanzo's hand and ran to stand just a few steps in front of McCree.

“Please just don't hurt anyone.” I wasn't sure exactly what my plan was but I had no doubt in my mind that if the reaper got any closer to McCree he wouldn't be kind enough to let him live. McCree reached his hand out gripping it firmly and pulling me into him. He held me close to his chest.

“You better hope I never see you anywhere near the girl.” I could feel McCree's chest vibrate as he spoke. I took a deep breath taking in his sweet smell. I watched his face serious as he stared the reaper down. Hanzo moved towards us his bow readied. Reaper seemed to back up as if something was scaring him, I knew it was a silly thing to think. Hanzo flashed me a small smile as he called out the same line I heard before. I looked up from McCree's chest admiring the beautiful blue dragons dart forward.

“Show off.” McCree mumbled as he moved forward, he looked back at Hanzo “I'll lead if anything happens to her I will hold you responsible.” McCree spoke as he pushed me towards Hanzo. The archer put his bow away once more and grabbed my hand, he held me slightly behind him. We moved close together. Carefully rounding each corner. I watched McCree's every movement, his face stern and concentrated as we moved. Seeing him so serious almost made him more attractive.

We had only run into a few talon agents, of which McCree took out no problem. We made our way back to the ship that sat a few miles from the talon base. There were a few people already on the ship. Tracers orange jumpsuit was slightly stained by blood, Mercy was looking over her a concerned look on her face. Tracer shot me a smile as she spotted the three of us coming up the ramp.

“Where is everyone else?” Hanzo questioned his hand still on mine. 

“They've been called back. They'll be here.” Tracer tried to sound carefree but I could hear the concern in her voice. Much to everyone's relief one by one people came back. Soldier was the last one to enter. I watched him in shock as he stumbled forward. I pried my hand from Hanzo's and ran to his side supporting his weight as he struggled to stay on his feet.

“Thanks, soldier.” He forced through the pain. I nodded and brought him over to Mercy, if I wasn't stronger than average I might not have been able to hold him up so easily. 

“Get us out of here Winston.” Soldier demanded. The ship rocked as it took off. I glanced around the room, a few people were injured but it looks like soldier got the worst of it. Hanzo was by my side the whole ride. His dark eyes watching me with concern the whole time. I stayed quiet not wanting to talk. I felt as though I failed my team. It was a simple mission I was put on and yet I was unable to take out one person, the one job I had I failed. I could have been the reason the team was attacked so harshly. It could be my fault that soldier sat there now covered in blood and in pain. Hanzo knelt down in front of me placing his hands on my knees.

“You okay?” I nodded. I stared at the part of his tattoo that trailed onto his chest. He jumped slightly as I traced a finger along the design. I felt as though everything was so distant from me.

“Thank you,” I muttered my hand dropping back to my lap. He gave my knee a tight squeeze.

I told you I'd have your back.” he flashed me a gentle smile, it was warming making me feel so much better. 

I found my way back into my room taking no time to tear my clothing off and run into the shower. The warm water hit my skin, causing a relaxed sensation to run over me. It felt nice to feel the dirt and grime to wash off me. I wouldn't admit it out loud but it was more the feeling of reaper's hands on my body I was trying to wash away. I could still feel his hands on my body, his lips on mine. It made me uncomfortable to think what could have happened if the team hadn't been caught by a group of talon agents when they did. I got out of the shower and threw on a pair of sweats and a cut off tee shirt. I sat on the bed with my head in my hands. 

Everything reaper said was running through my mind. He had changed a lot since I first saw him. The first time I saw the man his appearance was very different. He was tall and hi skin was a perfect dark color, seemingly flawless. He was handsome in every aspect of the word. His face was perfectly chiseled and his eyes were a soft hazel. That's how I remembered reaper. I wasn't sure of what his real name was. His appearance now was much different. I could still see the handsome man he once was under all the scars and the unnatural color of his skin. His eyes were the most concerning, dark and lifeless, matching the lack of heat that radiated off him. My fingers traced my lips, remembering the cold sensation of his pressed to mine.

A light knock sounded on my door catching my attention. I shook my head and stood up. I walked over to it and swung it open. Hanzo stood there smiling softly at me.

“I'm going to get something to eat I was wondering if you would like to join?” I hesitated before nodding. I would much prefer the be around someone than alone with my own thoughts right now. We made our way to the kitchen and made small talk. We sat at a table conversing about little things, avoiding talking about just exactly what went down on the mission. 

Someone else entered the kitchen and there stood McCree. He looked between the two of us an annoyed look on his face.

“Don't you have someone else to bother archer?” He spoke lazily as he made his way to sit beside me “You're going to end up boring the poor girl to death.”

“Sure it's much better than having to listen to you all day.” Hanzo retorted. I stood up awkwardly not caring to be in the middle of whatever feud the two had. McCree stood up with me, instantly forgetting about Hanzo.

“I'll walk you to your room.” He offered. I shook my head.

“No no it's okay really don't want you going out of your way.” I turned to Hanzo and smiled, “Thank you for the company Hanzo.” He smiled wide at me saying his name. He gave me a slight bow before I turned to leave. I could hear the two talking with each other, annoyance evident in both men's voiced. I brushed it off and ignored the quickly fading words as I moved down the halls. I heard quick steps behind me, I turned to see McCree running towards me.

“There ya are darling.” He flashed me a smile causing my heart to flutter, “Wouldn't be much of a gentleman to let a lady walk alone.” I laughed at his words.

“I think that only counts when I have to walk outside” I giggled.

“Psh who cares about the minor details,” I smiled at him enjoying his charm. He held out his arm, I happily hooked my arm through his. 

We stopped outside of my door. He paused briefly before dropping his hand, letting mine also fall from his. 

“Well thank you mister gentleman for being so kind as to walk me to my room.” I smiled, “Who knows what kind of wild creatures could have attacked me on my way.” I joked pulling a laugh from him. I couldn't help but laugh with him, his laugh was contagious. He calmed down and looked up at me from behind the brim of his cowboy hat. His soft brown eyes pulled me in. I carefully moved closer to him. He looked at me for a moment curiously before he figured out what I was doing. He took off his hat and held it to the side, wrapping his free arm around my waist he pulled me into him. I had to stand on my toes to meet his lips. The moment our lips touched I felt warmth overwhelm me. He pulled me in closer to him pressing my body against his. I could feel the armor he wore pressing into my body. The feeling alone was enough to drive me crazy. I wrapped my arms around his neck as if the action would bring us closer. He pulled away a smile crossed his face.

“Here I was thinking you weren't into me.” he flashed me wink.

“You didn't give me the chance to kiss you back last time.” I felt my cheeks turn red. He kissed my forehead lightly before putting his hat back on his head.

“Well, good night m’lady.” He bit his lip before walking away. I watched him move down the hall. Part of me was wanting to call him to come back and stay the night with me, the other part told me to not be dumb. There was an internal conflict going on within me when it came to McCree. I was unsure if he was actually into me or if it was more a game because I was the new girl. He was insanely charming and undeniably sexy. I wanted him dearly, yet couldn't figure out if he was just charming his way into my pants. I had a hard time believing that's what he was doing. 

I laid back in bed my mind wandering to McCree. I took in a deep breath remembering the feeling of his arm wrapped around me. It made me feel safe and secure, as though nothing could hurt me in his arms. I smiled and closed my eyes.

***

“You will work for me.” Reaper hissed. The girl looked up at him with tear stained cheeks. She backed away from him shaking her head.

“No. I won't.” A shot rang out forcing a scream from her. He moved closer to her, her back pressed firm against the wall. His face became clear in the dark. A sinister smile spread across his face. He gripped her arms firmly his cold lips running along her neck. She let out whimpers as she closed her eyes and wished for the man to leave her alone.

No matter how hard she wanted it the man didn't leave. He stayed there his body pressed firmly against hers. The lack of heat coming off him gave her the chills. He bit down on her neck drawing a pained whisper to leave her lips. 

“I made you what you are.” He hissed in her ear, his cold breath brushing against her skin “You belong to me.” His hands drifted down her body eagerly grabbing at anything he could. He tore away at her shirt revealing her torso. She shivered at the sudden exposure. 

“Please…” she whispered desperately begging the man to leave her. He pulled away from her his lifeless eyes watching her.

“You belong to me little girl.” he spoke again “You belong to me.”

***

I woke up my heart racing. I eagerly grabbed for the lamp beside me clicking the on switch. I narrowed my eyes as they adjusted to the sudden light. My door swung open. McCree stood in the doorway his chest bare. In all my confusion and terror. The sight of his bare chest quickly snapped me out of the fear. I traced his body each muscle prominent. He was sculpted perfectly. A few seconds went by before another body appeared behind him.

“I heard screaming is everything okay?” Hanzo peaked in beside the cowboy, he too had no shirt on. I stared at the two men, taking in the stunning image before me. Here I was covered in sweat and looking like a mess, in my doorway stood to undeniably attractive men. Hanzo pushed passed McCree and stood by my bed,

“Are you okay?” He asked kneeling down, he placed a gentle hand on my leg. I nodded and forced a smile.

“I'm fine. I'm sorry for waking you two. My eyes went from Hanzo to McCree. It wasn't till my eyes rested on Hanzo's hand that I noticed I wasn't wearing any pants. Hanzo noticing my stare quickly pulled away and turned his back.

“You're okay?” McCree finally spoke up. I nodded at him.

“Bad dream… I'm sorry I didn't mean to wake you both.” McCree's eyes wandered my bare legs, I bit my lip trying to fight off the urge to jump the man right then and there. Hanzo moved back towards the door.

“Think I'm perfectly capable of checking on the girl alone archer,” McCree muttered to the man as he pushed past him once again. Hanzo let out an audible sigh.

“It's a shock you're even awake with how heavy you sleep, gunslinger.” Hanzo spat back “must be the half bottle of whiskey you down before bed.” McCree shot him a glare and quickly turned his attention back to me.

“Well, get some sleep then darling.” He smiled, “If you need anything I'm only a few room down.” I nodded and watched him close the door. It took every little ounce of strength I had to not throw myself out of bed and open the door calling for him to stay. The nightmare I had quickly faded from my mind as I thought about the two men. They were both very different but very handsome all the same. Hanzo was proper and level headed. McCree was a charmer and clearly didn't have the head about him to think reasonably when mad. It didn't happen often but I had seen him angered a few times. He seemed so protective, though, when it came to me. They both did, but in very different ways. 

“You can't want them both,” I muttered to myself. I couldn't deny that to a certain extent I wanted both of them. I wanted to feel Hanzo's soft touch feel his hands on me the same way he gently caresses his bow when he's cleaning it. Yet I also wanted to feel McCree touching me his rough calloused hands exploring my body. I sighed and shook my head trying to force the images from my mind.

“I'm tired. I'm not thinking straight,” I spoke again trying to make sense of my thoughts. I closed my eyes and let sleep slowly take me away, the image of the two men in my doorway never fading from my mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this chapter was a little longer im sorry i hope I didnt lose your interest with it. Thank you so much for all the feedback it really helps meout in knowing if yall are liking what im writing. Thank you for the kudos and thank you for reading!


	9. jealousy

The next morning soldier demanded to see me in his office. I knew without a doubt it was to discuss just what went wrong when I entered reaper's quarters. I explained to him that it seemed as though he was almost expecting the company. This caused soldier to let out a string of curse words. Turns out the inside source was working both sides of the war. He had given Overwatch a lot of information about talon, but in return also did the same for talon. Every time Overwatch would attack a talon base they were ready for it because they knew it was going to happen. I didn't tell him every detail of my meeting with the man especially leaving out the kiss.

“I have reason to believe he was the man who hired my uncle.” This peaked the older man's interest.

“What makes you say that.” 

“Well, the fact that he outright took responsibility for making me the way I am.” He clenched his fists.

“How far back can you remember the tests?” He questioned. I shrugged and thought back.

“For as long as I can remember, to be honest with you I can't remember when exactly.” I thought for a moment again “the best timeline I can think of is before the fall of Overwatch.” Soldier nodded not saying anything more.

“Thank you, soldier. You are dismissed.” I stood up giving him a small nod “Oh, good work.” I felt a small smile creep across my face at the unexpected praise. I was expecting him to tell me how disappointed he was in my failure to succeed in the mission, surely he understood slightly the situation that I found myself in. 

I roamed the halls aimlessly for a few minutes before I stopped outside the shooting range. Hanzo stood in alone in the area carefully aiming an arrow at a target. The image reminded me much of the first time I saw McCree shoot. He was very different from watching McCree. Hanzo was a bit more precise and focused more on his posture as he let the arrow soar through the air. I opened the door to the range quietly watching him. A few minutes passed before he finally addressed me.

“Come here.” He spoke quietly. I walked towards him quietly. He turned to face me and held out his bow, “I'll show you, I did at one point say I would.” He flashed me a soft smile. 

“Oh goodness no I don't want to risk breaking your bow Hanzo.” He chuckled and looked me up and down.

“You can't break it I promise.” I took it from his hands carefully. It was beautiful, I eyed it carefully. It was made with a darker wood, a blue rope of sorts was tied skillfully on each side. I reached my other hand out to feel the string.

“It's gorgeous.” my compliment made the man smile and puffed out his chest.

“Thank you.” He cleared his throat and positioned himself behind me. He directed me how to use it. He warned me to not hold the string to close to my face. He explained the nocking point, which I learned was the part of the string that the arrow clipped into. I was surprised to hear it had its own name. He watched me carefully as I pulled the string back. I felt a firm hand press against my back causing me to straighten further. 

“Take a deep breath and focus.” his voice was quiet as he spoke softly in my ear “it's not a race… take your time.” I followed his instructions taking a deep breath him. The room was silent, I couldn't hear anything but Hanzo's soft breathing. I focused on my target, aiming directly for the chest of the dark cut out figure. I took one last breath before letting the arrow go. It shot through the air with a faint swish in the air. I watched shocked to see I had hit my target dead on. Hanzo patted me on the shoulder.

“You're a natural.” He smiled. I felt my cheeks flush “Try again.” He handed me another arrow. I clumsily fidgeted with it until I had finally managed to latch it onto the string. I pulled the string back once more and took in another deep breath. Just as I was about to let the arrow go the door swung open. Startled the string slipped from my fingers, lightly grazing my cheek. I winced pressed my now free hand to my cheek. Hanzo quickly grabbed his bow and placed it gently on a nearby table. He looked at me concerned moving my hand from my cheek. I could feel the sting of where the string hit, his eyes examined the area and he smiled at me.

“It's just a small cut, your lucky,” He turned with an annoyed sigh to spot the intruder “Of course it's the gunslinger, the only person who's not able to be quiet.” Hanzo's voice was coated with annoyance.

“Oh I'm sorry archer did I interrupt your private time?” McCree's eyes suddenly fell on me “Or not so private time, hello darlin.” His eyes stayed focused on me.

“you're lucky she didn't hurt herself further.” Hanzo hissed, “You're rude interruption startled her.” McCree shot me an apologetic smile.

“It's no big deal really. I just wasn't expecting anyone else to come in.” I smiled placing a gentle hand on Hanzo's arm. I was grateful for his concern for me but it wasn't needed. I watched McCree's eyes fall to my hand on Hanzo, a strange look crossing his face.

“Perhaps another time I can teach you uninterrupted,” Hanzo spoke softly. I nodded in agreeance, The bow and arrow was an interesting weapon to me, one that required patience and precise aim.

“I should go, I need to shower anyways.” I smiled at the two men and pushed past the cowboy his eyes following me on my way out. 

I enjoyed the feeling of the warm water splashing against my skin, the head loosening any sore muscles that I had. I wrapped a towel around my chest and exited the room. I paused hearing a familiar voice call out to something in my room. I peeked around the door to spot McCree kneeling on the floor trying to coax the cat from beneath.

“What in gods name are you doing cowboy?” He jumped up patting his hands on his pants as he did. He looked flustered like a small child caught in the act of doing something terrible.

“I was just, I uh…” His eyes traveled down my body taking in my wet form.

“Don't you know how to knock?”

“I did but you didn't answer.”

“So you just walk in?” He shuffled his feet slightly uncomfortable. I smiled slightly watching his usual confidence fade away, “I'll forgive you this time cowboy.” I smirked. He looked up at me surprised by my sudden joking tone. His usual charming smirk crossed his face once again.

“What can I do for you?” I questioned after a brief pause. He didn't reply, he simply closed the space between us. I pressed my back against the wall behind me trying to keep a bit of my own personal space.

“Why must you be such a tease.” His voice was a low rumble. I felt my heart skip a beat.

“A tease? What?” I was genuinely confused. He pressed a hand to the wall, locking me between him and a wall beside me.

“Don't play dumb darlin. The way you watch me, don't think I haven't noticed, undressing me with yer eyes.” I felt my cheeks burn red at his words “Watching ya act so innocent with the archer. Flirting with him, laughing with him.” his voice was lower now than it was when he first started. His southern drawl more and more prominent. I hated to admit it but seeing him like this stirred a spark in my body. I could feel his hot breath on my face. His eyes staring at me. 

“I don't undress you… That would be inappropriate…” I mumbled. He flashed me a grin.

“Suppose it would wouldn't it darlin?” He trailed his free hand up my side stopping at the top of the towel “I was the first to see you. Meaning he has no right tryin ta steal you away from me.” I arched an eyebrow at him.

“Steal me away? That would mean I was yours, to begin with cowboy.” I looked at him feeling my body fill with warmth under his stare, “I don't remember ever being yours.” With an evil glare he tucked a cool metal finger into the towel and pulled enough to loosen it, it fell to the floor. His eyes trailed along my body hungrily. I suddenly felt very insecure under his gaze, I lifted my arms only to be stopped by his hands firmly placed on mine.

“Guess I’ll have to make you mine now won't I?” I bit my lower lip. I could feel his eyes running along my body. His metal hand was cold as he traced a finger down between my breasts. I pushed myself closer to him craning my neck to be able to look at him properly. He was much taller than me, but that only added to his devilishly good looks. Just as I was about to pull him in for a kiss my door swung open. I froze, thankful that McCree was much bigger than me hiding me from the view of the intruder.

“We’ve got a mission.” Soldiers hardened voice called out.

“I'll be in the briefing room shortly.” McCree hissed.

“Now McCree.” The cowboy didn't bother hiding his annoyance “You too Persephone.”

“Yes. sir.” I managed to squeak out.

“I said, I'll be there in a few soldier.” He rested a hand against the wall as he turned his head slightly. I didn't dare move afraid that soldier would see me standing there buck naked, not my idea of a good time. I heard soldiers footsteps trail off as he mumbled something. McCree turned back to me and stood there silently for a few minutes, taking in the sight before him.

“We’ll continue this later.” His voice was laced with lust. I wanted nothing more than to tear off his clothing right then and there, just his voice alone was enough to make me want him more than anything. He turned and walked out the door. It took me a few moments to regain my composure. I quickly gathered the towel back around my chest and got dressed. 

The room wasn’t very full, there only stood McCree, Hanzo, soldier, Tracer and myself. Soldier was talking to McCree quietly in the corner, it was hard not to stare at the cowboy after our encounter. The moment I entered the room Hanzo's face lit up. He walked over to me eyeing my cheek. He reached out and stroked the fading red mark where his bows string had struck.

“Looks much better,” I smiled and nodded as he pulled his hand away.

“Thankfully like you said it wasn't too bad.” I could feel McCree watching us again. Some part of me was thankful he was watching, hearing his insecurity about Hanzo as he put it ‘stealing me away’.

“Alright listen up. We have a bit of clean up..” Soldier finally spoke up. The few of us in the room turned our full attention on him. He explained that there was a small gang a few miles out of town that had started causing trouble. Local authorities lacked manpower. It was up to us to help them out. I was nervous once again to be thrown on a mission. I trained regularly with soldier, my fighting skills only getting better, but I don't think I'd ever feel ready for a mission. We all moved towards the garage, taking a single black SUV on the mission. Hanzo took no time shuffling into the back with me. McCree sat on the other side leaving me crushed between the two large men. Tracer sat in the front with soldier. I could feel the warmth off both men, McCree's sweet smell wafted up my nose always mixed with the dull smell of cigar smoke. Hanzo, on the other hand, was clearly wearing some kind of cologne.

“Perhaps after the mission, you would like to come to the range with me,” Hanzo spoke up breaking the silence. 

“That sounds lovely.” I smiled, I could feel McCree tense slightly beside me. I smiled evilly in my mind. Part of me loved the reactions I now knew I could pull from the cowboy. We all talked here and there about small things nothing overly important, every time Hanzo would turn his attention to me I could feel the tension coming off McCree.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> slow chapter but I hopw you enjoy all the same, thank you kindl for all the kind comments I appreciate every last one of them!!


	10. possesive

I was hiding with Hanzo behind a small metal wall. I could hear the bullets bouncing off it, denting it with each hit. Static filled my ear as my earpiece tried to pick up an incoming signal. I held my hand to my ear pressing the button in hopes that perhaps it would do something to help.

“I've lost signal,” Hanzo spoke holding his bow tightly to his chest.

“I've got nothing, how many left?” I questioned. Hanzo peaked around the corner quickly taking in the talon agents on the other side.

“About eight.” He spoke slamming his back into the wall once again. I took a deep breath, a voice crackled in my ear.

“Hear - me - hello?” There was heavy static between each word. I glanced at a window nearby, a seemingly sturdy wall sat in front of it. I focused on the area finding myself quickly sitting across from Hanzo. He glanced over at me an obviously confused look on his face. I pressed my hand back to my ear.

“Soldier? McCree? Can anyone hear me?” There was a bit of static before the line became clear.

“Where ya at darling?” McCree's voice sounded very relieved.

“I'm stuck on the upper level with Hanzo.” I thought I heard him let out a low growl on the other side “What's the situation?” 

“I'm stuck. Can't make a move with the constant fire. I think there're a few turrets.”

“Kid? Is that you?” Soldiers voice kicked in. From the sounds of it, we were all being forced into hiding from constant fire, I had an idea but it seemed almost crazy to me.

“Yes. Listen we're all under heavy fire I have an idea, I'll need a bit of help.”

“What do you need?” Both Hanzo and soldiers voices came through the piece. I felt a small smile and very proud to know these men were so willing to give my idea a chance.

“I can probably get behind them, but I'll need some distractions.” I felt like I was talking crazy to think I could actually take out the agents. I explained exactly what I was planning to the three men listening. Soldier listened carefully and the line was dead when I was finally done.

“That might just work. Hanzo, how many arrows do you have?” soldier finally spoke up making me smile, I felt like a real part of this team, like a real overwatch agent. 

“Ten, no twelve.” He spoke.

“Are you crazy! She could get herself killed, this is a suicide mission.” McCree spoke up not attempting to hide the anger in his voice.

“You got a better idea gunslinger?” Hanzo spoke. McCree was silent “That's what I thought, give the girl a chance to shine.” Hanzo looked over at me and gave me a thumbs up.

“Hanzo cover the left side with McCree, I'll cover the rest.” Soldier spoke, “On your go kid.” I took a breath my heart beating loudly in my chest. This was our only way out, my chance to prove I am worthy of being here.

I focused on the turrets first, their mechanics allowing them to automatically aim at anything that crosses their path. The moment Soldier spotted me behind them he darted back and forth between cover, pulling the turrets to follow him. I took them out quickly, they were surprisingly easy to destroy. The next target was a small group of talon agents. I spotted McCree not far off, I gave him a nod before appearing behind the unsuspecting men. I took out two of them, the third had enough time to turn and fire his weapon at me. I avoided it easily and McCree shot him down. Soldier and Hanzo took the time to take out the other few agents. We all gathered in the back of the room near the exit.

“Well done kid.”Soldier patted my shoulder causing me to wince. Hanzo noticed and quickly looked over my body. If it wasn't for the torn fabric it would have gone unseen. My black shirt was torn revealing a dark red spot, small patches of torn skin shown where the blood wasn't covering. 

“Your hit.” He spoke carefully trying to keep his voice calm. I glanced down to my shoulder following his eyes. I hadn't noticed or even felt the wound.

“Can't be that bad” I muttered, “I can't even feel it.” 

“It's the adrenaline” McCree spoke up. I felt a sudden wave of dizziness hit me. Hanzo wrapped an arm around my waist helping steady me. 

“Let's get back to the car. McCree, you got the information we needed?” McCree was watching me his eyes filled with concern, “McCree?” He shook his head and looked up at soldier seemingly dazed he nodded. Hanzo helped me walk towards the black SUV we had arrived in. 

“You drive.” soldier tossed McCree the keys “You help me.” soldier was surprisingly gentle as he shoved me into the vehicle. Hanzo was sitting on the other end. 76 pulled my legs towards him as he sat awkwardly facing me. He straddled my legs making it easier for him to lean on me. My back was pressed firm against Hanzo. Soldier began working quickly and efficiently on the wound. He pulled out a small metal object, pressing a button on it and placing it on the ground.

“Wh-what's that?” I managed through the pain of his prodding fingers.

“Biotic field, it's much like Mercy's staff.” I eyed it curiously noticing my stare he picked it up off the floor and handed it to me. He had a firm grip on my shoulder. Trying to make it easier for him I used my other arm to look it over. 

“Isn't a real mission unless you get shot.” Hanzo joked I laughed with him, appreciating the attempt to make me feel better. I could slowly feel the pain taking over me. Soldier went through a bag he had yanked out from the back of the SUV. A small pair of tweezers were in his hand.

“This will hurt a bit.” He had an apologetic tone to his voice “McCree how far from the base?”

“Bout twenty minutes,” he replied his voice distant. Soldier nodded and turned his attention back to me.

“I have to get the bullet out, I won't do anything more after but try and slow the bleeding okay?” I nodded as he walked me through what he was going to be doing. Hanzo held out his hand for me to squeeze. I gripped it thankful for it. I winced and squeezed his hand hard as I felt the cold tweezers enter the wound. Hanzo let out a surprised yelp.

“That all you got? You squeeze like a girl .” He whispered in my ear. I quickly loosened my grip on his hand pulling a chuckle from him. I had forgotten that not everyone had the strange strength I had. He placed a gentle kiss on the top of my head “It's okay I think I can handle it.” I leaned my head back into his chest and squeezed my eyes shut. 

Time seemed to go painfully slow as soldier poked and prodded at the wound on my shoulder. I could feel my breaths become short and shallow as I tried to keep my screams silent. The SUV came to a jolting stop. McCree took no time hopping out. Hanzo helped soldier pull me out of the vehicle, my legs felt as though they were made of jello. Hanzo didn't hesitate to scoop me up in his arms.

“Get her to mercy.” Soldier called out to Hanzo who was already moving into the base. I closed my eyes slightly leaning into the man. 

“Mercy?” Hanzo called out as we entered the medical bay.

“Ja?” the blonde woman was standing off to the side at her desk, “oh dear what happened?” her heels clicked against the floor tile as she quickly walked over to us.

“It's just a little cut.” I opened my eyes and chuckled slightly at my own joke. Hanzo set me down on a cold metal table. She quickly got to work healing it up. I stared awestruck as the wound slowly faded till it was nothing more than a small swollen pink line.

“Hope you like scars.” Mercy finally spoke taking a step away from me. My fingers traced over the tender skin and shrugged. Not like I had much of a choice but to accept the scar. I didn't realize Hanzo was still in the room until he offered me his hand.

“let's get you to your room, you need to rest.” I took his warm hand in mind and followed beside him, “Sorry.” Hanzo finally spoke as we moved down the hall leading to my room.

“For?”

“You got shot. Clearly one of us wasn't doing our job well enough. I'm sorry I wasn't able to prevent it.” we stopped outside my door, I flashed him a smile.

“You did all that you could.” I held his hand in mine and gave it a small pat before letting go, “Thank you for helping me out today, I appreciate it.”

“My pleasure to help.” He gave me a slight bow before leaving. I fell asleep quickly the moment my head hit my pillow.

Loud thunder boomed, startling me awake. Lighting lit my brook briefly, the shadows of objects seeming more sinister in the light. I kicked the blanket off of me as I sat up. I was never able to sleep through thunderstorms, they always made me uncomfortable. I let out a loud sigh as I glanced at the clock. It was only one in the morning, far too early to be up.

“Fucking nature,” I muttered under my breath, giving up the idea of sleep I climbed out of bed. I exited my room quietly not wanting to wake anyone else up by being too loud. I made my way into the kitchen and proceeded to make a small pot of coffee. 

“you're up pretty early.” I jumped and spun to see Hanzo sitting at the island. I didn't see him there when I entered the kitchen.

“Jesus christ you scared the shit out of me!” I placed my hand on I now beating chest. He smiled apologetically at me, “I could say the same to you.” I muttered.

“Well a few of us here happen to struggle with storms.” He shrugged. A few of us? There must be a few another agent who was woken by the loud thunder that seemed to envelop the whole base. As if on cue another loud bang filled the night air, lightening brightening the room. I grabbed a small bottle of water and cracked it open. I leaned on the opposite side of the counter. 

“Hows your shoulder feeling?” 

“good, thank you!” I rolled my shoulder feeling a slight bit of an ache but it was nothing unbearable. He nodded leaving us in silence again. 

“What do you think of all this?” He gestured around the base.

“It's nice. Makes my life much more exciting than it was before.”

“Everyone treating you good?” I nodded taking another sip of water, “that's good.” The conversation slowly faded.

“How did you find yourself in Overwatch?”

“I was in a very dark place once… A man I knew told me it wasn't too late to change.” He paused for a moment, I could see him thinking about it “he told me about Overwatch. It took me some time before I finally contacted Winston, and here I am.” He shot me a half-hearted smile. 

The thunder was slowly fading. I yawned and felt myself slowly grow sleepy. I glanced at a large clock on the kitchen wall noting that only an hour had passed, I still had time to sleep. I said goodnight to the archer and headed off to bed.

I readied another arrow in the bow. Hanzo was standing close enough for me to feel his hot breath on the back of my neck. I took a deep breath and shot the arrow hitting the target directly in the head. I smiled and let out a happy giggle. 

“Well done.” I had woken and done my usual training with Soldier, Hanzo found me shortly after and offered me another chance to practice with his bow. I handed him the bow carefully making sure it didn't drop. He threw it over his shoulder.

“I'm going to get some breakfast, would you like to join me?” I nodded and followed him. He explained to me that he wanted to drop off his bow first. I stood outside of his room waiting for him to come back out. He stood in front of me for a moment as he left his room I was leaning against the wall near his door.

“You are a very interesting woman.” He spoke still not making a move to walk to the kitchen. I pushed away from the wall no longer leaning on it. Without warning, he moved towards me kissing me gently. I froze shocked by the sudden movement. He pulled away as someone approached. I stood there staring at him not caring to hide my shock. 

“You should probably leave archer.” McCree's voice pulled me out of it. He wasn't looking at Hanzo but watching me his eyes filled with an emotion I couldn't quite figure out. Before Hanzo could question McCree grabbed my hand and yanked me down the hall aggressively practically dragging me behind him. He shoved his rooms door open, kicking it closed behind him. He threw me against the wall pinning me between it and his body.

“I told you that you were mine.” His voice was a low growl. I stared up at him. I was ashamed to admit this side of him turned me on. His hot breath was brushing against my face.

“I don't remember you claiming me.” I teased biting my lower lip. He let out a low growl and pulled my head to the side-biting and kissing along my neck. I yelped as he dug his teeth into my shoulder. 

“I'll make sure everyone knows you're mine darling.” He hissed nipping my ear as he did so. With ease, he lifted up my legs. His fingers digging into my thighs as he did so. I wrapped my legs around his waist, my back pressed firmly against the wall helping me stay up. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him into an eager aggressive kiss. I bit his lower lip pulling a groan from him. I smiled against his lips. 

He pulled my shirt over my head, unclasping my bra just as easily. His bionic arm was firmly gripping my as-as he held me up. His free hand was not eagerly gripping my breast. He leaned down pressing his warm lips to the other. I moaned tangling my fingers in his hair. 

“I like that sound coming from your sweet lips.” He groaned. He pulled me away from the wall and spun around, laying me back on the bed with a gentleness that quickly vanished as he yanked my pants down, panties included. He sat up straddling me as he looked at me with awe.

“What's the matter cowboy, never seen a naked girl before?” I giggled and winked at him.

“Aint never saw something so goddamn beautiful before.” His voice was a low purr. He leaned down and kissed along my chest. I tugged at his shirt lifting it over his head. I stared in awe at his nicely tanned chest, his muscles rippling as he moved above me. I let a small sigh leave my lips as I took in his stunning frame. He kissed down my chest and further along my body. He was painfully slow as he kissed each thigh tenderly. McCree slid a hand between my legs his fingers teasing my entrance.

“Well well ain't you excited.” he teased, pointing out how wet I had become.

“Well, are you gonna do something about it, cowboy?” My voice was seductive. I took in a sharp breath as I felt a finger slowly enter me. He moved painfully slow. I tried to push down on his fingers, but the cool metal of his bionic arm kept me in place, “McCree please.” I pleaded with him.

“Call me Jesse little lady.” every word he spoke caused a new rush of arousal to course through my body.

“Jesse please,” I begged again. His finger began moving quicker adding another finger. I gripped the bed sheets letting out small moans. I could feel a warmth rise up in my stomach as I felt myself slowly reaching my climax. He pulled away quickly. I let out a disappointed whine. He sat up licking his fingers shamelessly, the sight alone drove me crazy. I pushed myself up fumbling with his belt. I paused for a moment as I read it ‘BAMF’ i looked up at him and shook my head before finally undoing it.

“Little eager don't ya think?”

“Shut up and help me take these off” I hissed. He obliged and pulled off his pants, not wasting time also bringing his boxers with them. I took in the sight of him fully naked before me. He was stunning, everything about the man was perfect, I wasn't able to see a single flaw in him. He leaned down and placed a kiss on my lips. Without warning, he thrust into me. My hands shot forward gripping his shoulders tightly. He pulled almost all the way out before thrusting back into me. I let out a light moan.

“You'll be doing a lot more of that,” he whispered in my ear. He brought a hand between us awkwardly and began to rub my clit pulling more moans from me, “dirty little minx.” he spoke again. Each word that left his mouth adding to the sensation of his thrusts.

“I like hearing you talk.” I managed to spit out between moans. He chuckled.

“Oh really now?” He pulled back his eyes watching my face. He began to pick up the pace moving faster and harder as he did. My nails dug into his back no doubt hard enough to leave a mark. The idea pleased me more than it should have. 

“Oh god Jesse.” I let out a loud moan. This seemed to drive him crazy as he moved faster. I could feel myself coming closer to my climax as he moved above me. He began letting out low groans as he too got closer to his peak. 

“So tight.” He struggled to get the words out as he moved. I called out his name one last time much louder than I had intended. The sound alone seemed to send him spiraling downwards as he thrust into me a few more times. I felt myself tighten around him as I reached my peak. 

McCree fell to the side panting heavily. He reached out and pulled me into him. I took a deep breath savoring his smell.

“Now that was something.” He spoke short of breath, he traced a finger along my neck admiring the marks he had left, “Now there's no mistaking. Your mine.” I giggled and cuddled closer to him. I fell asleep there cuddled closely into the man's warm chest.


	11. Chapter 11

The next morning was a rush of confusion. Soldier called on most of the agents for a recon mission. I was not amongst them leaving me alone in the base with the remaining few agents. I roamed the halls aimlessly unsure of what to do to pass the time. I missed the cowboy already. My mind and body craved everything about him. I craved his smooth southern voice and the bitter smell of cigar that wafted off of him. As much as I hated smoking I loved the smell, it was his smell.

I found myself in the bases small gym. I trained here with soldier almost daily but today because of the mission, my training was skipped. I decided to work out for a few hours hoping it would make time pass all that much fast.

“Hello.” a woman called out, her voice thick with a Russian accent. I turned to see a pink haired woman walk in, I knew her as Zarya. I never really got introduced to her, but in the first few days here Tracer had pointed out a few agents we had seen, most of whose names I couldn't remember. I remembered Zarya mainly just because of her bright pink hair, and perhaps the fact that she was the buffest women I had ever laid eyes on.

“Hello, Zarya.” I flashed her a smile. She was placing a few weights down in front of her. She walked over to me holding out a hand for a handshake. I grabbed it almost shocked by the strength of which she shook my hand.

“Persephone, yes?” I nodded, she looked me up and down before looking back at her weight, “ we work out together yes?” Her invitation made my heart swell up. There wasn't a single agent in the base that had made me feel unwelcome. For the most part, unless they had to talk to me, most of them would ignore me or avoid me. I didn't take it to heart as I was a newer member, most of the people in the facility knew each other for years before coming back, or joining. To see this woman going out of her way to invite me to work out with her, made me smile uncontrollably.

“Yes! I don't think I can lift nearly as much as you tho.” I watched her face brighten as she puffed out her chest slightly.

“It's okay. I'm strong woman.” She looked through the row of weights, picking a smaller set. She handed them to me, I stumbled forward slightly at the sudden weight. She made them look light when she passed them to me. I watched her carefully examining every move she made, quietly following suit. 

We did this for a few hours. She would sometimes stop to show me the right way to do an exercise. Once she was pleased with my posture and how I was doing it she would once again continue with her exercise. It was not easy to work, but it was much easier than the training I often did with soldier. After about two hours passing, Zarya had told me she was heading to get lunch. I didn't feel hungry myself so I simply said goodbye and roamed the halls alone once again. 

“Hey love!” I spun around only to be created by a blur of blue light. There was a tap on my shoulder behind me and I turned to face tracer.

“I thought you were with the others today?” The small brunette shook her head flashing me a quirky smile.

“Not today love. Today's my day off!” Her usual happy personality never failed to make me smile. I never knew someone so cheerful and happy before. She was one of those people always looking for the good in others and looking to make people's day.

“Well, that's nice I'm sure.” I smiled not really knowing what to say in response. We stood there in silence for awhile before she started talking again.

“Lucio and I are going to have a movie marathon today. You should join us!”

“I wouldn't want to impose on you guys, thank you tho!”

“Oh pish posh. I could use another gal in the room. Genji ain't much for talking and Lucio usually goes on about his music.” I thought about it for a minute before agreeing to go. There was no reason for me to stay alone all day if I had some company perhaps time would fly by a bit quicker. There was nothing more I wanted than to see McCree again. The two of us didn't get the chance to talk before he was dragged off to the briefing room this morning. I wanted to talk to him, to figure out just what to call him now. Were we an item? Or was he not overly interested in something that serious. Images of the night before took over my mind, warmth rushing through me.

“Love?” Tracers voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

“Sorry. Guess I let my mind wander, what did you ask?” She flashed me a sly smile.

“I was asking what's going on between you and Jesse?” My eyes widened.

“N-nothing really nothing there. Just friends.” She arched her eyebrow giving me a doubtful stare. I wasn't sure what to say, to be honest, I didn't want to tell anyone anything that would upset the end. 

“Uh-huh sure. You can tell me, love. I'll keep it a secret promise.” he looked up at me with puppy dog eyes, I chuckled and shook my head.

“Really i..” I paused for a moment “I'm not too sure…”

“Oh?”

“I mean he's a total womanizer right?”

“McCree? Nah, he sweet talks sure but I haven't actually seen the southern boy bring a girl to his room.” She paused for a moment, as though she knew my exact thoughts she continues “if he makes the time for you chances are he's interested.” I looked at her giving her a silent thank you, she simply nodded as we made our way into the small rec room. 

There wasn't much in it, it was very simple. There was a large air hockey table sitting in the middle of the room. To the left of the room, sitting in a corner was a large black leather couch and a flat screen tv. Along with a few tables and cabinets, there was a small mini fridge. Tracer raced over to the fridge and opened it grabbing two bottles. She threw one to me. I caught it with ease turning it to see it was some kind of soda. 

“Bout time you got here! If I had to force conversation with this guy any longer I'd go crazy. Tracer giggled settling in beside the DJ. He looked over at me and flashed me a wide contagious smile “Hey new girl!” he sat up facing me. I stood a few feet behind the couch, he was sitting on his knees facing me.

“Hey..” I spoke awkwardly.

“She has a name, Persephone, yes?” Another voice spoke up. I turned to see the cyborg, Genji.

“Yes that it.” I smiled.

“Hard to forget such a unique name.” He stood up and gave me a slight bow. Something about him seemed familiar. I didn't know him well, but every time I saw him he seemed calm and relaxed. Strange to see him amidst the two most upbeat people I know. Lucio was all about his music, there wasn't a moment that I saw him that he wasn't bobbing his head to some new tune. 

“Okay okay everyone sits, I wanna get this movie started! I've been dying to watch it since it came out.” Tracer spoke up. Everyone got comfy, I found myself squished between Lucio and Genji, Tracer was sitting at the far end. I was shocked to see that we were all able to fit on the couch comfortably. I was fairly hot and found myself leaning into the coolness of Genji.

Half way through the movie, I had lost track of what was happening I got up and began heading out. I felt a presence behind me as I left the room. I turned slightly to see Genji close on my feet. I turned around and looked over at him a small smile on my face.

“Is there something you need from me?”

“I needed an excuse to leave. Perhaps they'll yell at us less if we leave together.” I chuckled. I had seen him glance around the room uninterested a few times throughout the movie. Even heard him let out the odd bored sigh or play with the small shurikens in his hand as the movie went on.

“Did you find it hard to follow too?” I questioned, he shook his head.

“I don't have much interest watching those old robot movies. They always make it seem like they are all evil.” I felt bad for him instantly. The movie they had chosen was a remake of an old classic, I couldn't remember the name for the life of me but it was about a robot invasion. It was years ago when robots were considered robots. As the years passed omnics came to be, more intelligent beings, not liking being related to the emotionless beings in movies. I looked him over curiously. 

“I don't want to intrude at all, please tell me if I'm crossing a line here…” I started unsure just how to ask my next question “how much of you exactly is human?” I knew that his heart was human, I had remembered that being the first thing I was told.

“There are various parts inside this metal shell that are the original me.” He spoke with a gentle tone, but I didn't miss the slight discomfort he was hiding. 

“The shurikens are an interesting weapon choice.” I quickly changed the topic not wanting to make him uncomfortable because of my own curiosity.

“They are perfect for stealth, takes great skill to master.” he held one up as if pulling it from mid air and skillfully plays around with it in his hand. I watched in amazement as he moved smoothly.

“How long have you practiced with them?” I questioned

“Believe it or not, only a few years now. I wasn't much for weaponry in my younger age.” I heard a slight chuckle from him “I was more interested in video games and pretty women.” I was surprised by his comment. The man that stood before me now, the same man who always seemed so kept to himself. It was almost impossible to see him as a younger man ogling after woman. I tried to picture how he looked in his younger years, how he acted. Surely he was very different back then.

“I am off to meditation now, would you care to join?”

“I think I'll pass, too fidgety to do any sort of meditation.” I smiled at him. He waved me off and left. I watched him leave down the hall, moving with amazing grace.

I was once again roaming the halls alone. There was a lot of commotion coming from the hall leading to the med bay. Curiosity took over me as I got closer. I noticed soldier amongst the group of people. They must be back from the mission already. I need a few other people taken on the mission amongst them. I couldn't see McCree in the crowd, though. I moved in closer until I was one of the crowd. My heart stopped as I saw Reinhardt pulling a limp, lifeless looking body into the med bay. 

I knew that scruffy brown hair from anything. I pushed through the crowd stopping beside the larger man. McCree sat almost looking peaceful in his arms. I felt my hands begin to shake as I took in his tanned skin, now a pale color. 

“Oh god…” I whispered trying not to break down screaming right there and then. I could feel a strong firm grip on my shoulder. I looked to see Hanzo standing close by. My eyes were wide as I searched his face for an answer. This couldn't be happening. He had to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you all so much for reading and I know I say this a lot but thank you kindly for leaving your comments, I love hearing what you guys have to say.


	12. Chapter 12

Hanzo had pulled me off to the side as the crowd slowly faded out. Concerned faces everywhere as they left. He stopped me from entering the med bay. I was angered at first by his actions but slowly calmed down.

“Just give Mercy a bit of time to clean him up okay?” his voice was tender, like that of which you would use for a child.

“What happened?” I whispered trying to get McCree's state out of my mind. I was glad I didn't see anymore, if I did I don't think id be able to be this calm right now. 

“We were ambushed, talon knew we were coming.”

“Is everyone else okay?” He nodded.

“Only a few injuries, McCree was in the back. He was the first thing they saw before hitting us.” I felt my heart sink. Hanzo squeezed my shoulder “hey the gunslinger will be fine. He's too damn stubborn to not be okay. Not to mention how cocky he'll be once he's on his feet again” I chuckled as he spoke. He was trying to make me feel better and I knew that, but it worked. He got up and signaled for me to stay where I was. The archer disappeared in the med bay before popping his head out the door and waiting for me to join him. 

I braced myself as I entered the room, the smell of sterilized equipment was almost sickening. I spotted an off white curtain hiding a small area of the room. I knew instantly that was where he was. Mercy pulled back the curtain slightly her face lighting up when she saw me.

“Oh good, he's been asking for you and I can't handle his bad jokes anymore.” She flashed me a smile, a smile that was hiding her real concern. I moved past her pausing in front of the curtain. I could hear Hanzo asking her how McCree was, she responded with saying she did all she could. She wasn't sure just how he'll pull through. The words made me wince. I turned around to face the two.

“Won't your nanobiology work or whatever your magic stick does?” I couldn't remember the name she gave her staff for the life of me. 

“I can only do so much with that dear.” She gave me an apologetic look. I nodded and turned to face the curtain again. I pulled it back revealing McCree on a small hospital bed. His top was missing and his beautiful tanned skin was pale. It was painful to see. I moved towards him, his chest slowly rising and falling.

“Hey, cowboy,” I spoke quietly unsure if he was asleep or not. He turned his head to face me a weak smile on his face, though he looked sickly his charm was still there. I was surprised to see that he was actually awake I wasn't fully aware of exactly what his wounds were but given his appearance I assumed that he'd be sleeping.

“I must be dead for an angel to show herself to me.” I felt my cheeks flush with color at his words. I pulled a chair up to the side of his bed. He winced as he reached a hand across his chest. I noticed white bandages covering most of his chest and his lower torso. I moved closer gently gripping his hand. His skin lacked the comforting warmth I had gotten used to.

“You must have hit your head pretty hard to think such.” I tried to keep the emotion out of my voice. Looking at this strong hard headed man, seeing him in such a vulnerable state was saddening. “How are you feeling?”

“Well, I could feel much better if you lose a few piece of clothing.” He winked at me chuckling at his own joke. The action caused him to wince once again. I rolled my eyes at him. He was quiet for a moment, the muffled sound of Mercy and Hanzo talking filled the silence, “is that the archer?”

“Yes.” 

“I swear to god if he makes a move on you, I'll crawl out of this bed and put him here.” 

“A little competition is good for you.” I was shocked to heard Hanzo call out through the curtain. I laughed hard at the look that crossed McCree's face. 

“Don't worry cowboy.” I smiled softly at him. He squeezed my hand lightly. I spent a few more minutes by his side before Mercy came in and told him he should get some sleep. I was hesitant to leave his side but did so anyways. 

I found myself in my room, laying back on my bed eyes heavy. I worried greatly about Jesse. No matter how I tried to distract myself from the negative thoughts that rolled through my mind I wasn't able to, instead of fighting it I decided sleep was the best solution.

The next day was uneventful. I had tried to go and see McCree but mercy informed me that he was sleeping. I aimlessly roamed the facility occupying myself with small things here and there. I found myself in the evening outside. The familiar scenery surrounded me. I remembered the first time I walked from the base back to the city, I hated the fact that back then I was so willing to turn my back on these people, on McCree. I shook my head a smile forcing its way onto my face. There was a small path that I noticed lead down to the water. I followed it. A figure sat off in the distance.

“Genji?” The cyborg looked up at me, the green of his visor seeming to dim. I noticed another person beside him.

“Hello, Persephone.” He spoke calmly the sound of my name coming from him almost sounded nice. Everything I heard him say I thought sounded nice. The tone he always had in his voice was calming.

“Hey you.” Hanzo smiled and patted the sand between the two. Hanzo's tone almost matched genius. 

“I'm sorry I don't mean to interrupt anything, I was just looking to get some fresh air.” I felt guilty as though I walked in on something and was intruding. Hanzo shook his head.

“We were simply talking,” Genji added. I liked between the two for a moment. Hanzo almost looking relieved to have another person around.

“You two sound alike.” I said settling between them, “you both that that calming tone to your voice.”

“I wouldn't consider Hanzo calm.” Genji seemed almost tense at the comment.

“I'm sorry I didn't mean to say anything wrong.” It almost came out as a question. The two men were quiet for a long while before Genji stood up and left us alone. We didn't speak keeping the silence between us. The sound of the water splashing against the shore was relaxing. I laid back not caring if I got sand in my hair.

“The ocean brings out the calmest feeling in me.” The archer finally spoke up. I opened my eyes and looked over at him. He was staring longingly out into the water, “makes me forget about everything even if only for a brief moment.”

“you know there's places where sometimes the water flows a brilliant blue.” I heard him turn to me “the cause of it is bioluminescent phytoplankton. Just another thing that makes mother nature beautiful.”

“Have you ever seen it?” I shook my head staring up at the darkening sky. The sun was slowly setting painting the sky with beautiful pinks and purples.

“I wish. I saw pictures of it when I was younger, but my uncle always said chasing after such things are stupid.” it was true. Every time I would mention the glowing waves he would tell me it was silly to want to see some glowing plant in the water. He said this about many things that nature had gifted to us.

“Clearly, your uncle didn't know how to appreciate nature's beauty.” I shrugged my shoulders and glanced over at him once again, the cold evening breeze making me shiver.

“People tend to get so caught up in life that they forget to appreciate the finer things in life.” He nodded as silence once again enveloped us. Though we weren't deep in conversation I appreciated the company. 

“I'm going to head back inside. You good out here?” Hanzo asked standing up.

“Yes, I'll probably not be far behind it's getting cold, but I'd like to stay a bit longer” He gave me a slight nod before walking oddly. 

I lied when I told Hanzo I'd be close behind him. I had remained to lie down in the sand slowly fading off to sleep. It wasn't until I felt the wetness below me that I had woken up, the tide was rising and I was in its way. I stumbled to my feet shivering and now half my body soaking wet. Entering the base I took a deep breath enjoying the warmth that enveloped me. I made my way to my room to change, glancing at the time as I did. It wasn't too late perhaps I'd be able to visit with McCree. I didn't want to bother the man or mercy for that matter too much by always being around, though I wanted nothing more than to spend my time with him.

“Can I come in?” I peeked my head into the med bay door, Mercy was leaning against her desk her eyes drooping. The sound of my voice seemed to snap her awake.

“Of course, of course, he's awake you can go see him.” I blushed slightly as she gave me a wink. I walked towards the curtain that contained McCree.

“Is that an angel I hear?” I heard him call out as I pulled back the curtain. His face lit up like a child on Christmas morning when he saw me, “Well I'll be damned I was beginning to think you forgot about me.” I pulled a chair to his bedside once again. 

“How could I forget? Not every day I see a man dressed like a cowboy.” 

“Good makes keeps me on your mind” He winked before looking me over. He let out a loud sigh and smiled “I'm glad to see you again. Where were you? Your hands are cold.” I barely noticed he had grabbed one of my hands as I sat down, whatever Mercy was doing to him seemed to be working as he seemed in a little less pain now than the last time I saw him.

“I was out on the beach with Genji and Hanzo.” The mention of Hanzo's name caused his smile to fade.

“He ain't trying to make a move on ya is he?”

“Only got the room for one man in my life…” I looked up at him curiously waiting for him to say something about what was going on exactly between us.

“Oh? Who would that lucky man be?”

“Well I dunno I know this one guy has this really awesome doctor and-”

“Wait what? Doctor?” I let out a laugh as he fell for my tease. I gripped his hand firmly.

“Nah, doctors aren't my type, more into the cowboys.” 

“Well ain't you in luck I just happen to fit the type.” The two of us rambled on for what felt like hours about silly things and mindless flirting before Mercy interrupted.

“There a DVD and an old TV I found laying around perhaps you two would like a bit of entertainment?” She looked at the two of us before her gaze landed on me “I am going to get a hours worth of sleep but don't you keep him up! He needs rest.”

“Of course, Mercy thank you!” She showed me where the two items were and helped me carry it to a small easy to move the desk. The two of us positioned it in front of McCree's bed before she said her goodnights. I wasn't sure what the movie was but I really didn't care. McCree was watching it intently as it began to play. I was watching him. His every facial expression and the small smile that pulled at his lips when someone said something funny. The man was memorizing, it's a miracle I can even breath around him. He turned to me after awhile noticing my stare.

“That chair can't be too comfy darling, come up here with me.” he shifted slightly wincing. 

“Oh no no McCree don't move stay there in fine here.” He shot me an odd look.

“Jesse. Call me Jesse. I want you here. It'll help the healing process.” he added slyly. I shook my head and crawled into the small spot he had created for me. He tried to wrap his arms around me but the movement causing him pain. I instead settled for leaning on his shoulder. The warmth had returned to him as it radiated around me. I listened to his breathing feeling my eyes get heavy as I did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> slow lame and uneventful chapter I know forgive me please. THank you for reading and thank you for the kind comments!


	13. Chapter 13

The days seemed to fly by quickly. Mercy had given up trying to kick me out of the med bay, every time she did McCree wouldn't leave her be for doing such. I spent a few nights laying against his shoulder. The sleep wasn't perfect but the company was. We would barely watch the old movies as they played, we found ourselves more lost in conversation than anything. 

“Okay! I got this…. I think.” I muttered carefully adjusting my grip on the small weapon. Out of curiosity, I had practically begged Genji to show me how to throw a shuriken, perhaps it was my inner child that wanted to be a badass ninja but either way I wanted to learn. He barely put up a fight agreeing to show me how to. I knew I wasn't going to be any good at it but its the effort that counts, right?

“Steady. Do not rush.” His voice was calm and soothing, “Remember your elbow is your aim.” He adjusted my stance bringing the star near my head. I tried to position myself perfectly so I wouldn't miss the thin paper target in front of me. I threw the weapon forward only to watch it embed itself in the floor a few feet from me. Genji let out a soft laugh.

“That's better than nothing right?” I slouched as I tried to pry it out of the ground.

“Its… its a start.” he helped me pulling it up with ease.

“Genji has had many more years than you to practice.” Hanzo's voice piped in. He had made his way into the range silently without a word. He was already prepping his bow for practice. I flashed him a smile only to receive a distant stare from him. The feeling in the air changed greatly as he entered.

“Not everyone is as gifted with a bow as you,” Genji spoke bowing slightly to the man. Hanzo ignored his comment and shot three arrows in rapid succession towards his target. I shifted slightly before Genji turned his attention to me once more.

“Let us try again.” I nodded trying to brush off the obvious tension I felt. He lined himself up behind me, the cool metal of his body was nice compared to the hot temperature around me. His hand snaked up my arm as he showed me the movement I should be following through with when I released the shuriken. He let go and took a few steps back. I repeated the action a few more times before finally letting it go. I was proud to see it went further this time. I still didn't hit my target but it was instead embedded in the wall beside it.

“Yay! I got it stuck in something other than the ground!” I jumped clapping my hands. Genji laughed at me. He held up a few more and threw them with ease at the target, each landed in such a way that it created a small square “Show off.” I muttered crossing my arms.

“He has never been one for modesty,” Hanzo spoke again never turning to face us. I noticed that his aim was far off from his target. He drew his string back and fired, I watched as his arrow landed dead center of the shurikens.

“Neither were you brother.” My eyes widened at the word. Brother?

“You two are brothers?”

“He is not my brother.” The tone in Hanzo's voice made me flinch, he was harsh and aggressive about it “My brother died many years ago.” With that he turned and walked out quickly, the door slamming behind him. I stood in silence for awhile before turning to Genji. He was removing the weapons from the target and carefully returning them to their rightful place. 

“Did I say something wrong?” I asked quietly shocked by the aggressive tone I received from Hanzo. He was such a calm man I would never have expected such a response from him before. 

“You did nothing wrong. He has his own demons to battle.” His answer did nothing for me but raise more questions.

“Are you really brothers?

“Yes, we were the heirs to the shimada clan.” he spoke quietly almost seeming lost in his own memories.

“Shimada clan?”

“My family was not the most trustworthy of people, we were part of a large crime circle.” I could keep the shock from my face when he told me this. The man before me was modest and sweet. It was hard to think he was ever part of anything sinful.

“What happened?” his body language changed as he tensed up.

“People change. We do stupid things because we think it is right, and in the moment we believe in our hearts our actions are justified.” His tone was cold as he spoke. “Even if it means going against your own flesh and blood”

“Family is family, though. Who are we to trust if we don't even have that?” he didn't say anything merely stood in silence. It pained me to think something between them kept them so distant with each other. Though my family life wasn't the greatest either what I do remember of my family before staying with my uncles was nothing but good. I believed that family was important, the one thing you had to run to when things went to shit. 

“What happened between you?” I questioned. He simply shook his head, “I'm sorry…” I turned to walk away leaving the cyborg to himself. 

I walked towards the kitchen only to be stopped by a firm grip on my shoulder. Hanzo was standing there a strange look in his eyes.

“I apologize for being so rude earlier. That is not in my nature and was wrong to do to you.” I smiled and gave his hand a light pat.

“It's fine Hanzo, I shouldn't have stuck my nose where it belonged.” though I said this I didn't believe I said anything wrong, all I did was question if they truly were brothers. I believed fully that his reaction was a bit overboard but wasn't about to hold that against him. I still go touchy even when people asked about my uncle, I could understand why he reacted like he did.

“Allow me to accompany you to lunch to make up for my rudeness.” 

“Of course!” I smiled. He followed close enough beside me that I could feel the heat radiating off of him. We were quiet as we walked, it wasn't an uncomfortable silence, though. The tension that I felt from him early had dissipated, he was once again the calm man I had come to know.

“He is my brother” He spoke up once we got our food and finally sat to eat. I was surprised to hear him now so willing to admit it.

"Hanzo you don't need to talk to me about it" I understood if he had his reserves about speaking of whatever it was that happened between them.

"no, I want to. Perhaps saying it out loud will help me come to terms with things." I sat silently as he began his story. Explaining to me that they were the next in line to rule the family's business. Many looked to Hanzo to get his brother under control. He had no interest in the family business and spent more time fooling around than anything. Once his father died the clan elders began talking about his brother's actions. They demanded that he straighten him out. Hanzo had tried to talk reason into his brother but Genji refused to take any part in the family business. Hanzo was lost tossed between the clan elders and his brother. The two fought violently, in the end, it resulted in the death of Genji.

Hanzo was heartbroken and struck with grief about what he had done, though the clan elders were very pleased that the troublesome boy was gone. Unable to deal with it, he left the clan and roamed the world searching for a way to restore his honor. He had found himself in a confrontation with a man he later found out was his brother. Genji told him it wasn't too late to redeem himself, a new war was coming and he was able to help fight it. It took him months before he finally decided to join Overwatch.

"Oh my..." was all I could muster. He looked down at his food playing with it absent-mindedly. I couldn't imagine the guilt he was feeling, the tension between the two suddenly made so much sense to me.

"I lost my honor. Its very hard to look at the man I once called family and to see what I have done to him" I placed my hand gently on his stopping him from dragging his fork over his food.

"You came here knowing your brother was here. You came here knowing that perhaps somehow with some work you could forgive yourself." 

"How could he even forgive me?" his voice was low. I smiled at him softly.

"You need to forgive yourself Hanzo." he paused for a minute.

"May I ask you a question?" He changed the subject quickly. I figured he had enough talking of the past. 

“Of course, you may.” He looked as though he were trying to find the right words to say. He licked his lips and looked up at me.

“The gunslinger and you are close, yes?” My cheeks turned pink as I focused on my food.

“I guess you could say that yes.”

“Well, You see uh…” He suddenly seemed nervous now “I mean I was wondering. What I wanted to ask is uh…”

“How many times I gotta save the poor girl from you, archer?” The familiar voice caused me to spin around. McCree was walking towards the two of us slowly.

“Oh my god what are you doing here!” I asked jumping to his side. He was wearing a baggy shirt and a pair of gray sweatpants, yet he was still undeniably attractive. McCree winked at me and gave me a small peck on the cheek.

“Mercy lets me out, for the most part, I'm feeling better.” he smiled “Hope ya don't mind scars darling gotta feeling these wounds may leave a few behind. 

“For the last time, I was simply keeping her company. “ Hanzo stood with his almost empty plate and looked between us. He gave me a quick nod before walking off.

“Why can't you boys get along,” I muttered under my breath. McCree took no time wrapping his cool metal arm around my waist and pulling me into him. His lips met mine in a passionate kiss. 

“I'm sorry sugar…” he pulled away from me flashing a cocky smile, “I just don't like sharing what's mine.” I bit my lips trying to hold back a smile. He leaned in for a kiss once more. I placed my hands on his chest pulling a sharp breath from him.

“Oh my god I am so fucking sorry!” I pulled away quickly looking at him with worried eyes. He let out a bellowing laugh at my response.

“I'm just fucking with ya. The pain is gone, the sounds almost fully healed thanks to the docs magic.” I gave him a light punch on the arm, not a hundred percent sure if he was being serious of not “I like hearing ya cuss like that, kinda turns me on.” His words made my face burn bright red.

McCree and I took a small walk outside, he wasted no time lighting a cigar he had made time to get on his way out. Being with mercy for a few days she refused to let him smoke inside. It didn't stop him from trying once or twice. She eventually got sick of it and removed any and all cigars from his care until he was able to get up and smoke them outside. Though I was still stuck on how in gods name he got them from while in the med bay. I watched him closely. The golden rays of the sun hit his face, making his brown eyes seem to almost lighten. I never got a good look at his face in the light as it was always darkened by the damn cowboy hat he always wore. I could see the years of working hard evident on his face. A few laugh lines and wrinkles here and there but nothing that made him look old. Even though he was slightly older than me I could barely notice the age gap. He still looked like a young man, I could only imagine him in his younger years. 

“Done staring?” He asked turning his head to me, blowing out a puff of smoke. I smiled and shook my head.

“I don't think I could ever get sick staring at you.” I said truthfully, “you're just so goddamn handsome.” For the first time, I watched as his cheeks turned pink. His eyes fell to the ground as he ran a hand through his hair.

“Well thank ya.” he muttered still not keeping eyes contact with me.

“Don't tell me you don't know how to take compliments.” I stopped walking and turned to face him fully.

“Well I mean I don't get them all that often not like I go out all the time or anything, the life of an overwatch agent aint full of fun time and party.”

“Yeah but I mean…” I trailed off, “never mind, I don't care to question it. I kinda like seeing you like this.” I teased and continues to walk again. He pulled me back spinning me around. Without a word, he kissed me. I closed my eyes and savored the feeling of his lips on mine. It was perfect, our lips locked together like two pieces of a puzzle.

“I hate to break up this little moment between you two but I need to speak with you Persephone.” Soldiers voice broke the kiss between us. I pulled away and cleared my throat almost embarrassed I got caught kissing McCree. I wasn't embarrassed to be seen with him by any means. I felt like a teenager who had been caught kissing the boy next door. I wasn't sure if relations between agents was even allowed. 

“Yes, sir.” I pulled away from McCree's embrace only to have him pull me back briefly towards him.

“Come see me tonight, please?”

“Of course cowboy.” I gave him another quick kiss before running to catch up to soldier. He didn't say a single word as we entered the building and made our way towards his office. I closed the door firmly behind me as he moved to sit behind his desk.

“After much research and a few calls. Its come to my attention that it was without a doubt Reaper who hired your uncle. The tests done on you were an experiment to make to put it simply a walking weapon, something easy to manipulate, this is why it was done to you at such a young age.” I sat down in front of him, the chair creaking slightly as I did so.

“How'd you find this all out?” I asked curiously.

“I have my ways and when something involves one of my agents I find out everything,” Being called one of his agents made me smile slightly.

“This is both good and bad.” He started, “The bad part being reaper will never stop trying to get to you.”

“Even if he did, he's already tried to convince me to work with him, ” I smiled “he knows he cants change my mind I mean really, in the end, I'm just like any other Overwatch agent in his books. I'm sure by now he knows I won't.”

“Talon has ways of doing things.” He laid his hands out on his desk “as you could imagine this makes you a high priority target for talon.” I looked at him confused by what he meant. How could one force me to work for them? I thought about torture, even then I don't think I'd want to work for the enemy. I had come to love everyone here in Overwatch, everyone was so different from anyone I'd ever met. Then there was McCree, now that I know him I can't imagine my life without him. It sounds crazy even to myself but I have grown to like him much more that I ever thought possible.

“I don't understand what the good is.” 

“The good is we have a weapon against talon. As long as you're with us we have a chance at bringing them down. I believe there is more you are capable of, Winston believes that your abilities will keep changing and altering. So…” He stood up and picked up the round box on his desk and walked over to me. He signaled for me to stand.

“What's this?” I asked as he handed me the box. I opened it not waiting for an answer, inside was an orange and white Overwatch pendant. I smiled up at Soldier.

“I would like to officially welcome you into Overwatch as an official Overwatch agent.” He held out his hand but I brushed it aside and gave him a hug. He froze for a moment before patting me on the back uncomfortably. The action itself made me unbelievably happy. I had never truly been a part of something, overwatch was like one big family, everyone looking out for one another I was now part of that same family.

“Than you so much 76!” I tried hard to keep my voice down, I was overwhelmed with happiness. 

“This being said tho agent, you are always at risk on the battlefield. I need you to keep this in mind and always follow my orders.”

“Yes, sir!”

“You are dismissed.” I headed towards the door “Oh and by the way, you and McCree better be able to work together without making out on a mission.” I heard his chair groan as he sat back in it. I kept my back to him hiding my smile.

“Of course, sir, Thank you, sir.” 

I was practically running through the halls towards McCree's room. I couldn't wait to show him the small little pendant, I had no doubt that everyone had one but this was me. Of all people, I was part of Overwatch. Never in my life did I ever expect such a thing to happen, my whole life has changed completely since I the first night I met McCree and I couldn't be any happier. I gave the cowboys door a quick knock before swinging the door open. 

“Woah woah there calm down darlin, what's all the excitement?” I had run into him full force as I entered his room. I held the box up to him smiling proudly, “Well I'll be damned the old man made ya an agent.”

“Yep!” 

“I dunno how I'll get any work done with you around.” he smiled placing a small kiss on my forehead “Welcome to the team sweetie.” I pulled away from him and collapsed on his bed. My cheeks hurt from smiling so much and my chest felt as though it was about to explode. It was the simple things in my life that made me feel this way. I was an official overwatch member. I would have to work hard to train and practice day and night to become a great agent like everyone else but I was more than willing to do it. Then there was McCree, the charming southern cowboy. I looked over at him he was smiling at me softly, he sat on the edge of his bed. There was no way I'd give him up for any other man in the world. He was cocky, and sometimes pushed his flirting to the limit, but that's just what I learned to love about him. There was just one thing on my mind that bothered me, my smile slowly faded.

“Whats the matter dear? Whats going on up there?” He tapped my forehead lightly. I sat up propping myself on my elbow.

“Soldier mentioned something that's kinda bugging me a bit.”

“Whats that?”

“Well, he said that Talon wanted me, to train me and use me as a weapon. I explained to him that reaper has already tried to convince me but I refuse. Even with torture I don't think I would” I paused for a moment taking a breath “he said talon has ways. I just don't understand how you could turn someone against people they once loved.”

“There was an agent year ago, back when Overwatch was fresh, his name was Gerard Lacroix. He had a wife. She was a beautiful and kind woman, Amelie Lacroix.” he started running a hand gently through my hair “Talon had tried to kill him many times but when they failed they turned their attention on her. They kidnapped her and subjected her to intense neural reconditioning. She became a sleeper agent. She returned to us seemingly normal, a few week later she murdered her husband and returned to Talon. They put her through intense training and her physiology was altered slowing her heart and pretty much removing all emotion she had. That's when widowmaker was born.” 

“Jesus christ…” I muttered feeling slightly afraid. Thinking they could do such a thing to people was terrifying. I couldn't imagine being the reason McCree was dead. Or any of the other agents for that matter. How had they managed to succeed in such a thing? McCree pulled me up to him till I was sitting comfortably in his lap.

“It was a shock to most of us to find out she was still alive, we assumed she was either kidnapped again or killed.” My mind was spinning from the story. He tightened his grip on me.

“They can do that?” I asked quietly. I can't imagine being responsible for anyone's death…” He lifted my chin up with a finger his eyes meeting mine.

“They won't have a chance to do it to you.”

“How do you know? Something could happen. I cold fuck up and get caught and…” he pressed a finger to my lips smiling at me softly.

“They wouldn't have the chance to lay a hand on you before I killed each and every one of them for even thinking about trying to alter that pretty little brain of yours.”

“You can't always be there McCree,” I spoke truthfully. I held his hand in mine tracing the lines on his palm.

“I will never let anythin happen to you, darling.” I looked up at him once again “Plus I already told you I don't like sharing what's mine.” he flashed me his signature crooked smile. I shook my head and giggled.

“You've claimed me?” He laid back on the bed and pulled me into his chest.

“I thought you'd have remembered such a moment.” 

“Barely recall your name cowboy.”

“I guess once I'm feeling myself again ill just have to refresh your memory.” I laughed and laid my head on his chest listening to the steady beat of his heart. It was calming. Things may not always be perfect and I may find myself in hard situations at times but I couldn't help but look forward to my future here. As an Overwatch agent, helping people who needed it. Even if talon had an eye out for me I wouldn't go with them easily. I'll put up a fight and defend what I believe in. Overwatch is where I belong, hereby McCree's side. I welcome Reaper or any other talon agent to try and change that. I’ll show them just what im capable of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay okay I know not the best ending im sorry. It was kinda a slow chapter. I hope yall enjoyed it all the same thank you so much for reading and thank you for the kind comments and kudos.


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